


The Bond-Breaker Murders

by Desirae



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Angel Castiel, Angst with a Happy Ending, Bottom Castiel, Crime Drama, Detective AU, Detective Dean Winchester, Friends to Lovers, Hurt/Comfort, Insecure Dean, Jealous Castiel, M/M, Pining, Soul Bond, Supernatural Mega Bang 2017, Top Dean, True Love, True Mates, Wing Kink
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-21
Updated: 2017-07-21
Packaged: 2018-12-04 20:44:46
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 31
Words: 75,696
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11562996
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Desirae/pseuds/Desirae
Summary: In a world where the supernatural live amongst the humans, it is not unheard of for angels and humans to mate. But not without consequences. Once bonded, one mate cannot live without the other. If a mate dies, the other will soon pass of a broken heart, leaving children orphaned, and families wrecked.Detective Dean Winchester and his partner, the angel Castiel, had decided long ago, not act on their unspoken love due to those consequences. Though it was always more Castiel’s choice than Dean’s. The angel was not willing to risk taking Dean from his loved ones, should he ever fall in the line of duty. But soon Dean and Castiel find out that they are far more bonded than they knew and when an angel/human mated pair is murdered, the case hits a little too close to home.As the shining stars of the Paranormal Homicide Division, it is up to Dean and Castiel to discover who is responsible and bring them to justice.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Holy Chuck, this fic was a labor of love. I hope everyone enjoys it. It's different from anything else I have ever written. I kind of wanted to give this whole pining thing a try...though lets face it, if you know me, you know the classic happy ending is my jam. (No, not that kind of happy ending. Get your minds out of the gutter.)
> 
> This story is a detective au in a paranormal setting. Some of the tech may be more advanced in this story, than would be possible irl:)
> 
> I need to thank my insanely talented artist, Nonexistenz. I am in love with all of the art for this story, and I am sure you will be too. Please, check out her work for this fic [here](http://archiveofourown.org/works/11547918), and check out more of her fabulous art [here on tumblr](http://nonexistenz.tumblr.com/tagged/my-art) Please show this chick some love.
> 
> I also have to thank from the bottom of my heart, my best friend and teapot, Bekki, without whom this would not have been done in time, or quite frankly, been legible. She's pretty much my hero.
> 
> All Enochian translations are in the bottom notes
> 
> You can find me here on [Twitter](https://mobile.twitter.com/DesiraeSterite) and [Tumblr](https://desiraelovesdestiel.tumblr.com)  
>  
> 
> [](http://imgur.com/Oy7Nntn)  
> 

Dean made a _pffting_ sound as he looked at the text message on his _iphone_.

 

_From Cas: Car broke down. Could you please pick me up this morning?_

 

Dean couldn’t help but wonder how long it actually took Castiel to work up the nerve to send that message. He’d be willing to bet a bottle of Commissioner Crowley’s thirty year old _Glencraig_ that he at least _considered_ calling a cab before he nutted up and texted Dean.

 

Dean tossed his phone on the coffee table and stood up to stretch. He was really too old to be sleeping on the couch. The lumpy brown monstrosity was going on six years old and had a broken spring in the left seat.

 

Dean scratched at his stomach through the thin grey material of his old NYPD Academy tee-shirt, as he padded barefoot across the cheap beige carpet to his small kitchen. He turned on his _Keurig_ before he opened the cabinet and pulled down an oversized travel mug covered in cartoon bees; a souvenir gift from Castiel from his trip to _Honeywood Hives_. Flashes of the argument from the night before invaded Dean’s mind as he gave the mug and lid a quick rinse.

_“Going to that meet without backup was idiotic, Dean. I’m your partner, you should have called me.”_

_"Come on, Cas. Don’t you think you’re overreacting? It wasn’t like I met him in the back of a dark alley, we were in a friggin Biggerson’s.”_

_“That’s not the point, Dean. Protocol-”_

_"Fuck protocol, Cas! You know how Sonny is around supernatural people. There was no way he was gonna give me the info if I brought an angel along, partner or not.”_

_Castiel pushed an agitated hand through his mop of dark hair, “You still should have told me. I could have sat outside. What if he’d been followed? What if something had happened to you?”_

_Dean let out a bitter laugh. “What if it had? You’d have been fine. It’s not like we’re bonded or anything.”_

_Silence followed as they stared each other down in Dean’s kitchen. Castiel's eyes flashed blue fire and his voice was hard gravel when he spoke._

_"That was low, Dean.”_

_Dean ran a hand over his face and sighed, “I know,” he admitted grudgingly._

_"You know why we… we talked about why we can’t,” Castiel nearly whispered, voice pained._

_Dean snorted. “You talked. I went along because you’re not really giving me much of a choice.”_

_“Dean, I-”_

_"Forget it, Cas. Look, I’m sorry about tonight, okay? If it makes you feel any better, it was a bust. Sonny didn’t tell me anything we didn’t already know about Roman anyway.”_

_“Ah, yes. Much better. Always good to know you risked yourself for nothing.”_

_Dean rolled his eyes. “We risk ourselves everyday, Cas. that’s the job,” he said with a sassy wink._

_Castiel blew out a frustrated breath. “You’re incredibly irritating, you do know this?”_

_“Yeah, yeah. It’s late. Go home, feathers.”_

_There was another charged silence before Cas’ lip turned up in the hint of a smile. “Sleep well, Dean,” Castiel said, before leaving the room, oversized tan trench coat billowing behind his tall frame._

The hum of the coffee maker brought Dean back to the present. He poured his coffee, black, and detoured back into the living room to grab his phone before heading into the bedroom. He tapped out a one-handed reply as he unsnapped yesterday’s jeans and shimmied them down.

_From you: Told ya to junk that pimp mobile. Give me a half-hour, forty minutes._

Castiel was an earthbound angel. Angels who chose to be stationed on earth could teleport, but only short distances, a mile or two. Flying the fifteen miles from Castiel’s house to the precinct was not advisable. Angels like Castiel who chose to work on the police force, or as healers in the E.R. of hospitals, could drain their strength for hours depending on the distance they traveled or the severity of the injuries they were attempting to fix. An angel could spend all day healing little colds. They could handle fixing four or five bone breaks. But life threatening injuries, stab wounds, gunshots; those could put an angel out of commision for a day or two. And of course, there was no raising anyone from the dead. If someone was fatally injured and just missed making it to the hospital, then there was nothing that could be done. But more often than not, angel healers saved thousands everyday. And being nearly indestructible, angels like Cas who worked with the police were integral in keeping crime down and domestic disturbances from turning deadly.

There were only two things that could kill an angel. A weapon, be it blade or bullet, infused with an angel's essence - or grace as they called it - through the heart.

_Or the death of their bond-mate._

With so many angels choosing to be stationed on earth, it was not unheard of for angels and humans to mate, creating a life-long-and-beyond bond. When a human and an angel bond, the human’s aging slows. The angel, though powered up, will begin to physically age along with their human. A pairing left to live peacefully and barring any fatal injury, could live anywhere between 150 to 175 years, after which when the human passed away, the angel mate would join them in their personal heaven.

A bonded pair would feel each other’s emotions in cases of extreme stress, emotional turmoil or intense pleasure. Though rare, some bonded pairs could speak telepathically in certain situations-emergencies or intimate situations. It is hard for an angel to heal their own human mate because of their bond. It is much harder for an angel to heal a deep wound when they can feel their mates pain. Trying to concentrate hard enough to heal a near fatal wound properly while feeling it in sync with a mate can end in tragedy. Bond-mates simply cannot continue to live once one of the pair has passed, and will die themselves, within a few hours, of what basically amounts to a broken heart.

It is the reason why some angels and humans will choose not to mate, even when they are deeply in love. The risk of one taking out the other, leaving families behind broken.

_Sometimes it’s because one of them is too stubborn to even consider it._

Dean pushed the sour thought away as he headed into the shower. He took a sip of his scalding hot coffee before placing it on the counter of the sink. Dean turned the shower on, stripping as he waited for it to get hot. He wished he could indulge in a little solo time, but if he wanted to make it to Cas’ house and the station on time, Dean knew he had to be quick. Dean scrubbed his head with a cheap bottle of _Suave_ , pissed off that he would smell like coconut all damn day. He supposed he should have known better than to ask Sammy to grab him a bottle of shampoo the last time he stayed over.

Dean washed his body, hoping the Irish Spring would combat his beach vacation hair and quickly rinsed. He reached towards the towel rack, and wrapped the thick cotton around his middle before stepping out onto the bathmat.  He took another sip of his coffee, which luckily hadn’t had time to go from scalding to lukewarm just yet. Dean finger combed his hair and brushed his teeth before he applied his old spice deodorant. He then carried the travel mug with him into his bedroom.

Dean placed his mug on the bureau and dug out a pair of boxer briefs and socks. Dean pulled on the briefs and slipped into the jeans he wore yesterday that were still laying on the floor. He sat on the end of his bed and tugged on his socks and brown boots. Dean opened his nightstand and pulled out his colt, along with his magazine and cuff case.  He attached them to his _Galco_ belt. Grateful for being able to wear plainclothes, Dean grabbed his _Motorhead_ tee-shirt and a red checkered flannel out of his closet. He checked the pockets of his scarred leather jacket to make sure he had his notebook and pen in one side pocket, the other housing his badge. He left the bedroom, double checked to make sure the coffee maker was turned off before grabbing the keys to his baby, a 67 black Chevy Impala, before heading out the door to pick up his stranded partner.


	2. Chapter 2

At thirty-seven, Dean was a detective 3rd class in the Paranormal Homicide Division, going on seven years. He’d been partnered with Castiel for five of those seven years. After moving up in the ranks of the department from rookie, to detective first and then second class, Lieutenant Singer had thought it was time that Dean have a little extra manpower, or angel power as it were, and assigned him a partner. There were only a handful of angels who worked out of the 18th precinct in Crossroads, New York. There was Inias in homicide, and sweet faced Samandriel, affectionately known as Alfie, in vice.

Dean had worked as a rookie in homicide before transferring to the PHD after showing a knack for the more paranormal side of things. Dean had a bit more knowledge than most. When his father had passed away when he was sixteen, leaving his Mom and twelve year old brother Sam behind, it had been hard on the Winchester family. When it came to light that it had been a death by paranormal forces, a shapeshifter, Dean had studied everything he could about the different species living amongst the humans. He joined the academy with the goal of someday being a part of the paranormal homicide division.

Dean had learned along the way that not all paranormal creatures were bad. Some just wanted to live regular lives like humans. Werewolves with built in panic rooms in their homes so they could wait out the full moon without injuring another human, and like many Vampires, bought their food solely from the Supernatural Blood Banks. There was the demon outreach program, for those lost souls who wanted to regain their humanity. They would be injected with purified blood over a period of time, and those strong enough to handle the guilt and shame that usually came along with the regaining of their soul, would go through heavy rehabilitation before being released into society and made to go to mandatory counseling until a healthcare professional deemed them sound enough to stop. Unfortunately, many were not able to make it through, either slipping up and caught and killed, but those that were able to make a go of it, were considered to be especially strong and brave individuals. Such as Commissioner Fergus Crowley, cured some fifty years now, and responsible for taking down some of the most notable demon crime rings as well as having the highest rate cases solved in the state to this date. Dean respected him immensely, though he could do without his snarkiness. Crowley himself had been impressed with Dean’s own record and had initially been the one to suggest to Lieutenant Singer that Dean take on an angelic partner.

Dean had been nervous at the thought of working with someone that powerful, initially. He actually stressed out about it for weeks before it was all finalized. His brother Sammy had been staying with him, on spring break from Stanford. His freakishly tall and insanely smart little brother had been studying to be a lawyer, specializing in criminal law, with hopes of one day becoming a judge. The night before Dean was supposed to meet his new partner, he’d gotten stupidly drunk with his brother and woke with a hangover that rivaled his first foray into whiskey. He had been cotton mouthed and it felt like there was a cage fight going on behind his eyeballs. The end result being Dean had been too sick and overtired to really be nervous. Instead, he had walked into the precinct forty-five minutes late, wearing aviators, and clutching a styrofoam cup of coffee like his life depended on it. Dean felt his lips tug up in a soft smile at the memory.

_Gordon Walker smirked at Dean as he made his way through the bull pen._

_"Rough night, Winchester? I’m not sure the department’s golden boy should be strolling in nearly an hour late when he’s supposed to be meeting his new partner,” Gordon's voice held a touch of envy and Dean just responded with a one fingered salute as he made his way to the back of the room and down the hall._

_Lieutenant Singer was waiting for him in his small office, which was now sporting two desks instead of one. Through his tinted lenses Dean saw a stiff postured man, just shy of his height, with dark tousled hair and a stubbled face. The angel had deep blue eyes and lips that Dean would have been doing his best to get a taste of if they were meeting at a bar or club._

_“Nice of you to show up, boy,” the Lieutenant said, censure in his voice._

_“Yeah, I’m sorry, it was Sammy’s last night-”_

_“I don't want your excuses, idjit,” he said, and jerked a thumb at the angel who had yet to move a muscle. In fact Dean wasn't sure if he had even blinked. “This here is Castiel. Let’s hope your second impression goes better than your first.”_

_Dean turned and held out his hand to Castiel, who was staring at him, head tilted, looking as though Dean were a fascinating creature he had just discovered._

_“You are wearing sunglasses inside,” Castiel said, and whoa if that wasn’t some hell of a voice. It was all smoke and gravel and Dean ignored the tug of want it inspired in him._

_Dean cleared his throat. “Yeah, I know. I look like a douchebag. My kid brother’s been staying with me, he goes back to Stanford tomorrow and we got kind of carried away with the Fireball.”_

_Dean took an involuntary step back, eyes crossing as Castiel reached out with his index and middle finger, laying them on his forehead. Dean felt the most extraordinary tingling feeling throughout his body. Like when his foot would fall asleep, only everywhere. It lasted maybe three seconds and when the feeling went away, it took Dean’s excruciating headache with it. He sighed in relief before smiling widely at Castiel._

_"Thanks, man.”_

_“Of course, Dean, what are partners for?”_

_Lieutenant Singer rolled his eyes. “Not first aid for hangovers, that’s for sure,” he said gruffly. “Show him around, Winchester, get him caught up on your cases. You’re being docked an hours pay, by the way, for waltzing in here so late.”_

_Dean fought rolling his eyes as the older man walked out of the office._

_“So, Cas. Tell me why you decided to clip your wings for a life on earth?”_

Dean roused from his reverie as he bore a left off of main street and onto Herring Pond Road. Dean smiled to himself as he entered the kid friendly neighborhood. Castiel lived in a small three-bedroom house on the outskirts of Crossroads. A charming little cape, bright yellow, with a door in robin’s egg blue and a farmer’s porch. The first time Dean had been to Castiel’s house, he couldn’t have been more surprised. Dean had assumed he lived in a small studio apartment. Finding him in Suburgatory was not what he expected.

Castiel’s two closest siblings, Hael and Gabriel, both worked at the hospital as healers and were earthbound angels as well. Gabriel, because the archangel was overly fond of all of life’s earthly pleasures, and Hael, because during her Grace Walk, which was essentially like the Amish Rumspringa, had found her mate in a human doctor named Kevin Tran. When Castiel decided to stay on earth as well, it was in large part due to his brother and sister. And when Hael and Kevin welcomed their first child, a beautiful boy named Oliver, she became a stay at home mom and Castiel had wanted a place where they could visit comfortably, and where his nephew could play. The angel had even had a swing set installed in his backyard. As a Nephilim, Oliver would not be immortal, but he did heal faster than most and his life span would be around the same range as his parents.

Dean’s car approached the end of the road where the cul de sac was, circling halfway before turning into Cas’ short driveway. He’d barely put baby in park before his partner was stepping out his front door, locking it behind him. Dean watched as Castiel squinted up at the bright sun, before his trench coat clad body made its way down the drive.

The car door opened with a snick as Castiel climbed in. The car filled with the aroma of fresh rain, citrus and petrichor and Dean inhaled deeply. Dean often thought if Cas could bottle his scent, he could make millions. Of course, it was a thought he kept to himself, though Dean wondered sometimes if Cas could tell what he was thinking, by the barely-there smirk he sometimes wore when it crossed his mind.

Dean quirked a brow at the angel as Castiel fastened his seatbelt. “It is the law, Dean,” Cas said, a hint of impatience in his tone.

Dean huffed a laugh, causing his partner to grin at him in response. Dean shook his head.

“Yeah, yeah, Sheldon, let's go.”

“Thank you for picking me up,” Castiel said, and his voice was quiet. Dean reached over, placing a hand on his best friend's shoulder, gripping until Castiel turned to meet his gaze. Dean saw so many emotions swirling in the blue depths. Love, sadness, resignation, and worse, guilt.

“Cas, you can always call me, okay? No matter what. If we’re fighting, if we’re not fighting, if we’re ever whatever it was we were last night. I will always come when you call. Capisce?”

Cas swallowed audibly, as though there was a lump in his throat. “I capisce.”

Dean backed out of the driveway and Cas spoke again, deliberately lighter in tone that he was before. “Aren’t you going to lecture me?” he asked, staring straight ahead.

“About what,” Dean asked, flipping on his blinker as he turned back onto main street.

“About my car and how if I insist on driving a vehicle that makes me look like a pimp, that I have to have regular maintenance to keep it in shape for driving?”

“Would it do me any good?” Dean asked, though he already knew the answer to that.

Castiel just shrugged.

“Yeah, that’s what I thought. I’m willing to bet you spent more money on that stuffed bee hanging from your rearview then you did on your last trip to jiffy lube,” Dean narrowed his eyes as he saw Cas, shifty-eyed, turn toward the window.

“Cas?” Dean prompted as he pulled into a Dunkin Donuts, maneuvering into the drive through lane.

“Mm-hmm?” came the reply, Castiel staring avidly out the window as if the coffee shop’s parking lot was the mystical land of Narnia as opposed to the morning pit stop he made every day, with or without Dean.

“When _was_ the last time you had an oil change?”

Castiel mumbled something under his breath.

“I’m sorry,” Dean said as he inched along in the line of cars, “ I didn’t quite catch that?”

Castiel gave a painstaking sigh. “I said, when you did it.”

“Seriously, Cas?” The appalled note in Dean’s voice was unmistakable.

The angel at least had the decency to look guilty. Dean shook his head as they pulled up to the speaker. “I’ll call Ash and have him tow it back to the garage, see if he can’t fix her up.”

Dean’s heart tripped when Castiel smiled warmly at him. Dean stared back, knowing he looked as sappy as he felt, and knowing he had to cut that shit out.

They both jumped at the sound of a tinny voice coming from the speaker.

“Welcome to _Dunkin Donuts_ , what can I get you?”


	3. Chapter 3

Dean banged his head repeatedly on his desk, accompanied by pained moans and drawn out groans. Castiel had no pity for the human before him, peering at up at him periodically with pathetic puppy dog eyes.

“Why is there always so much paperwork?” the words came out garbled as Dean’s face was currently smushed into the cheap espresso toned surface of the  _ Officemax magellan collection _ . The thing wobbled on one end, the thick copy of Encyclopedia Brittanica LOR through MEC wedged underneath barely helping. The file cabinet’s handle had been re-screwed on at least three times that Castiel knew of. Cas knew that the department only dished out a few hundred for novelties such as comfortable sturdy office furniture. Instead they saved it for the state of the art computer systems down in Cyber Crimes. Castiel also knew that he and Dean were lucky that their ancient HP’s could still host google chrome.

“Dean, we have had all week and we split the paperwork,” Castiel said, causing the freckled man to raise his gaze. “Somehow, it’s Friday and mine is all done,” he continued and gestured widely to his own desk, a  _ Monarch  _ (Castiel had put up the extra for an upgrade) in cappuccino.  He still remembered Dean’s words that day.  _ Dude, why am I gonna pay more for a desk when they give me one for free? Extra legroom, or a PS4? No question. _

“Shit,” Dean cursed and Castiel barely held back the snicker as his friend banged his knee against the side paneling as he sat up. Dean glared at him mutinously. “Don’t think I didn’t hear that.”

Cas couldn’t help the fond smile that crept over his face. He gave a dramatic sigh. “Fine. Hand that stack over. You need to go change for court. You have to testify in the Wilson case at 2pm and it’s already quarter to one.”

Dean visibly shuddered at Cas’ reminder. That had been a tough case. Ava Wilson, a young  _ Kharisiri _ , also known as a  _ Pishtaco _ , was on trial for three murders of four young teens.  _ Pishtacos _ were a parasitic creature who fed off of the fat of humans. Many worked in the health spa field where they could essentially work by providing liposuction to high paying customers. Some chose the less glamorous vocation of being waste disposal for plastic surgeons. A  _ Pishtaco _ usually wasn’t a supernatural being that caused too much trouble. Most deaths involving them were accidents. A feeding gone too far. When the first emaciated body showed up, it was an avenue they traveled. Young girl, maybe thinking she’s was helping out a friend, friend goes too far. But when Castiel and Dean had questioned the victim's parents, they had no knowledge of their daughter being close friends with any supernatural beings. A week later when the second body was discovered, a boy this time, they were able to find one thing in common. Both teens had been campers at  _ Teen Wellness Trails _ in  _ Hudson Valley. _

After interviewing the families and the owners of the wellness center, it was determined that there had only been one new employee that had been working at the same time the vics were at the camp. Ava Wilson. She’d only worked there for about a month, as a janitor, before she just stopped showing up. Castiel, noticing the shoddy security, had asked the owners, where they kept the files of the clients, whether they had a monthly list. Cas remembered how frustrated Dean had been to learn the office was kept unlocked, and the ‘confidential’ files were easily accessible. How the stupidity of others had aided in these crimes.

After getting the list of all the teens attending the camp during the month of June, Castiel had started trying to get in touch with Ava whilst Dean drove. Of course the number that she had listed was no longer in service and there were no Ava Wilsons listed in the area. A trip to her Long Island address had netted them a Mom&Pop coffee shop. Dean had been pissed, banging his fist on Baby’s wheel with a gritted out  _ son of a bitch.  _ They had spent the ride back to the precinct lamenting if all of the companies background checks were that lax. Once back in house, Dean tapped Charlie Bradbury, the IT specialist in Cyber Crimes, to see if she could work her magic with the bogus photo I.D. Castiel started calling campers families, speaking to those who answered, and asking them to be on the look out, and not to open their doors to anyone matching Ava’s description. Those Castiel couldn’t reach were divided up between he and Dean and a few rookies for knock on doors.

It was at the last house they visited when Castiel and Dean had heard a struggle from the front door. Dean had drawn his gun and Castiel had used his grace to open the door easily. The scene they walked in on was brutal. A young girl, couldn’t have been older than fourteen, lay flat on the hardwood floor as Ava Wilson aka Melanie Shield- _ according to a text from Charlie- _ straddled her victim. Ava’s mouth was split open, and from it’s depths her sucking appendage attached to the young girl's chest, furiously taking in so much body fat that a hole was forming in the child’s torso. When the  _ Pishtaco _ heard the commotion of the door being opened, she had come off of the girl with a sickening pop. The creature bolted up and out towards the back and Dean had given chase. Castiel had focused his energy on healing the girl. Cas had knelt by her side.The poor thing had been wheezing, chocolate brown eyes at half mast, and skin paler than snow. Castiel had shushed her gently, pushing dark bangs back from her forehead as he healed her. It had been a close call and had taken quite a bit of energy on Castiel’s part.

Though Mia- _ the girl _ \- said she was fine, Castiel had insisted that she go with the paramedics when they came, and promised to have her parents meet her at the hospital. While Castiel had been dealing with Mia, Dean had easily overtaken Ava on the back porch and had her cuffed in silver, as they waited for Garth Fitzgerald, a rookie in the PHD to come and take her back to the station for holding in one of the warded cells.

Dean’s sigh as he stood, arching his back and eliciting a few pops for his effort, drew Castiel out of his musings. He watched as his friend extended his arms above his head, eyes closed and interlaced his fingers. The movement pulled up his tee-shirt, exposing a slip of soft skin from around Dean’s belly. Castiel's breath caught at the sight, and he swallowed audibly. Dean’s eyes snapped open and moss green flecked with gold met Castiel’s azure gaze and held. For the span of three heartbeats the tension was nearly palpable. Then Dean diffused it with a wink and a playful kissy face.

Castiel huffed out a laugh, shaking his head. “Go. Change, or you’ll be late. Though you could have just saved yourself the trouble and worn the suit in.”

Dean, who’d been headed to the bathroom, where his suit hung on an inside hooked, turned to look at him incredulously. “Do you not know me at all? Do you not see the powder marks from my donut this morning? “

Castiel nodded his head in acquiescence. “Point taken. Though I could have just cleaned you,” he said, waggling his fingers.

“I’m not having you waste your grace because I am a slob when I eat, Cas,” Dean chuckled, closing the door behind him.

“Yes,” Castiel called after him, “probably not a good idea. The way you eat, I’d be too low on power in case there was a real emergency.”

“You know, I think I liked you better before you learned how to be a wise ass,” Dean’s voice was muffled through the door but the obvious affection in his voice had Cas grinning to himself proudly.

“I owe it all to you,” Cas said in mock seriousness.

When Dean came out a moment later, Castiel couldn’t stop the sigh. “ _ Ol biab mad _ ,” he murmured under his breath, to which Dean just raised a brow.

“Are you making fun of me in Enochian, Cas? That’s just rude.” Dean said in mock annoyance, as he straightened his green and grey pinstriped tie. Dean shrugged into the matching slate grey jacket. “Are you coming with me? I know you already testified.”

Castiel tore his gaze away from his partner's body in his smart suit and refocused. He had already given his testimony earlier in the week, but he did want to be there to see the whole thing through.

“You go on ahead, and I will finish up this paperwork. The courthouse is not that far, I will just fly over-”

“Apparate,” Dean interrupted with a grin.

Castiel rolled his eyes. “Fine, I will just “apparate”,” he finger quoted, “over there when I am done.”

“Alright. I’ll see you then. Thanks for the help with the reports.”

“You are welcome, now quit stalling and go.”

“You know me too well,” Dean said as he left and it was not lost on Cas that he didn’t sound entirely happy about that fact.

The office was quiet without Dean’s presence. It was like when Dean left a room, he took all the life and light out of it. Everything was muted, lacking in energy. Dean had the brightest soul that Castiel had ever seen. It was warm and luminous and gave him such a radiant aura. Not that Castiel made a habit of peeking into other people’s souls, but with Dean, he hadn't been able to help himself. Even without looking within the human, an incandescent hue surrounded the man, as if Dean’s body could not contain it all. So of course Cas had delved deeper. When he had put his fingers to Dean’s head that first meeting, in the guise of curing his hangover, Castiel had been hardpressed not to gasp aloud, as a sea of swirling, golden light assaulted his vision. Inside that golden blaze, at it’s center, it was like Dean was made up of the most perfect sunset, with pinks and purples, oranges just pulsating from within. It made him nearly breathless. To be partnered, then friends, with such a perfect soul, had been humbling.

Not that Dean was faultless. Far from it. He was a sloppy eater, he procrastinated on things, like the reports Castiel was currently filling out, and he definitely drank too much. He was impulsive, never thinking of his own safety before others, which drove Castiel mad. But his soul was pure, his heart, full of love, and there was no one, angel or man, that Castiel trusted more than Dean Winchester.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ol biab mad: you are divine


	4. Chapter 4

Dean wasn’t sure whether to be impressed by Melanie Shield’s lawyer, or disgusted. D.A. Josie Abaddon Sands was known for painting the accused as the victim, and today’s defense was no exception. Ms. Sands had tried to nudge Dean into saying how scared her client was, how distressed, but Dean did not fall into line. He told the court that Ms. Shield’s only distress appeared to be from getting caught.

Dean caught Cas’ eye and gave him a short nod, as the angel walked into the back of the courtroom just as Dean was leaving the stand. They sat through Garth’s testimony and then the defenses’ therapist who tried to sway the jury into believing that Ms. Shield’s abandonment issues were what led her to go to extremes such as murder, to get caught, when there were obviously so much easier ways for her to have procured food for herself.

Dean rolled his eyes. That’s what they all tried to say. _ They didn’t mean to. It was their upbringing.  _ Well, at some point you grow up, you are an adult, and you know right from wrong. Ms. Sands, trying to persuade the jury that the fact that the accused’s mother left her at sixteen as an excuse for her actions made his stomach turn.

“So, what you’re saying Dr. Gaines, is that Melanie’s mother leaving her, and not teaching her the proper way to feed, led to her acting out, and seeking more dangerous modes of survival?”

“Objection,” ADA Masters scoffed, “Leading the witness.” Assistant district attorney Meg Masters was no pushover. Dean found her loud, abrasive, sarcastic and smart as a whip.

“Sustained. Get back on track Ms. Sands,” Judge Bane's voice brooked no argument.

“ I have no further questions, your honor,” D.A. Sands responded.

When both lawyers were asked if they had anyone else to call, and it became apparent that Dean would not be called again for more questions, he didn’t bother hanging around for closing arguments. He knew what had happened. He had been there. Dean signaled to Cas, and the angel rose to meet him.

They met out in the hall, footsteps echoing loudly on the hard tile of the courthouse floor.

“I’m surprised you didn’t want to stay and hear the rest,” Castiel said as they went through security once again.

"No point, man. Either they’ll convict or they won’t, and I don’t want to listen to some ‘poor me, my childhood sucked’ sob story when that girl is guilty as can be.” Dean pushed through the double doors leading out to the front stone steps. The sun was bright and he took a minute to pull his sunglasses out of his inside pocket and pop them on. Castiel remained quiet. Dean glanced at him, only to find the angel fixated on a red bird. It was perched on the fence surrounding the park across the street. As if sensing his gaze, Castiel spoke.

“It’s a  _ Summer Tanager.  _ It’s the only wholly red bird in North America.”

“Huh. What’s it doing out here? Shouldn’t it be in the woods or something?”

Castiel shook his head.“They do enjoy oak and pine trees, but are also often found in parks, orchards, and roadsides. It’s a beautiful songbird. However, it eats bees, and that, I am not so fond of.”

Dean and Castiel stood at the bottom of the courthouse steps, heads angled to the side as they watched the little red bird flit across the gate then fly up into the trees.

“What about the stinger?” Dean asked as they started walking again, taking a left out to where Dean had parked the Impala. They reached the car and Castiel looked at him stoically from over the hood.

“Before he eats it, the bird rubs the bee against a branch until the stinger falls out.”

Dean stood outside for a moment after Castiel had climbed in on his side. From his vantage point by the car, he could still see the flash of red from the Tanager high up in the pine tree. He shook his head, once again marveling at the random bits of knowledge his best friend hosted in that heavenly brain of his. Dean huffed out a small laugh before getting in his Baby.

The drive back was short and quiet. Someone from the courthouse would call the station when the verdict came through, there was no point in waiting there. After a quick stop at _ Dunkin Donuts _ Dean found himself back at his desk all too soon, with another slew of paperwork and a extra large black coffee.

“Hey, you coming over for the game, Saturday night? Sammy’s coming home and he’s bringing those buffalo wings you like,” Dean asked, with a waggle of eyebrows.

Castiel tugged at his tie, looking across the desk at Dean, and uncomfortable expression on his face. He cleared his throat. “Uh, no, actually, I have-I have a date.”

Dean choked on the sip of hot coffee, jostling his mug, spilling a bit of the hot liquid down the front of his dress shirt. “Shit!”

“Dean,” Castiel called softly, and the tender look of understanding on his face was nearly Dean’s undoing.

“It’s fine, Cas. I’m just...,” Dean laughed in self deprecation, shaking his head. “I’m just stupid.”

Dean was grateful when Cas was prevented from responding by a knock on the door. Charlie Bradbury pushed her way through, without waiting for permission to enter.

“Charlie,” Dean smiled, face schooled into a casual mask of cheer. “You’re like, my favorite person right now.”

“Uh-oh. Did I interrupt a fight or something?” Charlie asked, concern in her tone.

“Pfft, Cas and I don’t fight,” Dean said and rose a challenging brow as Castiel snorted and rolled his eyes. “Fine, we don’t  _ always _ fight. Only about the important stuff,” the last part was quiet and Cas gave a nod of agreement.

Charlie cleared her throat, awkwardly. “Yeah, well, anyway. The Lieutenant wanted me to tell you he has to cancel the end of the week briefing, he will email everyone with anything pertinent.”

“Okay, thanks for telling us. I hope everything is okay, it’s not like Bobby to be so last minute about this kind of stuff.” Dean was puzzled, debating on whether he should drop by after hours. Bobby may have been his Lieutenant, but outside the walls of the precinct, he was still him and Sam’s Uncle Bobby.

“Oh, I don’t think anything is wrong,” Charlie rushed on to say. “I think he has some meeting with Crowley that got pushed up, and since everything is pretty well handled this week…”

“He didn’t see the need to keep us, gotcha.”

“Yep, so I am gonna go finish this report. That Gomez case I was working on? Over a hundred thousand counts of identity and credit card fraud. Guy finally got pinched selling counterfeit driver's licenses. They found him with over two grand in accounts at his hotel.”

Dean whistled. “Pretty ballsy of him, not keeping that info in a safe or something. What's the P.A. going for?”

Charlie pulled a rubber band out of the front pocket of her blue T.A.R.D.I.S. button down and proceeded to tug her long red hair up into a messy bun. “Ruby is asking for 40 years, but the Lieutenant said if he had to guess, she’d be lucky to get 20. At this point, the feds are taking over anyway. I mean, besides what we got them on? There is a whole other fuckton of crimes they have on him too.”

“So even with just the 20, “ Castiel piped in, “there going to get him for more.”  

Charlie clicked her tongue as she aimed a finger gun at Castiel. “We still on for Saturday?” she asked, now turned towards Dean.

“Do hobbits enjoy second breakfast?” was Dean’s reply.

“Sweet. It will be good to see Sam, I missed him the last time. Up for some World of Warcraft Cas?”

“Oh, Cas isn’t coming,” Dean said with a smirk. “He’s got himself a hot date.”

“Dean,” Cas said, tone low.

“What? Is it supposed to be a secret?” Dean knew his voice held false cheer, bordering on obnoxious, but his mouth seemed to have a mind of it’s own. Castiel stared Dean down, not liking what Dean thought might be pity, stirring in those blue depths. “We’ll be fine, more snacks and booze for us.”

Charlie laughed. “Yeah, I’m sure Cas will be real sad if he misses out on tequila shots when he could be getting laid.”

Charlie’s words caused Dean’s stomach to drop, and his coffee was in serious danger of coming back up. A glance at Castiel showed the angel a little green around the gills as well. “Excellent point, Red. Now get out of here, I wanna finish up. If the briefing is called off, I can get out early and clean up before Sam shows up tonight.”

After Charlie left, giving the Vulcan salute, the air in the small office was tense. Dean felt like his heart was hammering in his chest and he tried to take slow breaths to calm it down. He didn’t look up from his paperwork until he felt a hand on his shoulder. A warm tingling sensation spread throughout his body and he felt the tension draining away from his neck. He sighed audibly. That was about the time Dean realized what had just happened. He shrugged Castiel’s hand off of his shoulder.

“Don’t do that.”

“Dean, I just-”

“No. You don’t get to just mojo my feelings away to make yourself feel better. I get it, man. It’s fine.”

Castiel came around the front of Dean’s desk and planted his hands down, leaning forward until Dean met his gaze. Castiel’s eyes held naked regret. “It’s not fine, Dean. You are my best friend. You are my partner. Do you think I enjoy seeing you in pain?”

Dean laughed mercilessly. “Does it matter? It’s there whether you see it or not, and that’s on me. I mean, obviously I am the one hung up. I am the one who thought...it doesn’t matter. You made your decision, which I need to respect. I just need some time to get over it. I’ll be better.”

Castiel reached out and cupped Dean’s face. “I don’t want you to be better, I want you…” his words trailed off and Dean gave a soft, sad smile.

“You want me. Just not enough.”

Castiel straightened out, and his eyes that had been so full of emotion before, were hard now.  “If you are under the misconception that this is easy for me, you are wrong.”

Dean knew that. He just wished that were enough to ease the ache in his heart. Dean licked his lips and nodded up at Castiel. “I know,” he said, running a hand through his hair, sending some of the honey toned locks up in spikes. “ Human here, though. My emotions get the best of me sometimes, and I can’t guarantee it won’t happen again. I’m trying, Cas. I really am.”

“Would it be better if I transferred?” Castiel’s voice was steady, but Dean could hear the grief under the gravel.

“No. Of course not. We’re stronger than that, Castiel. Our friendship is stronger,” Dean smiled when he heard Cas sigh in relief. “It’s probably good that you’re dating. I should too. I should get back out there. Aaron has been tripping over himself trying to ask me out for months.”

Castiel’s raised a brow. “Aaron, the new rookie? He seems...nice.”

The way Cas said nice, as though it were a dirty word had a weight lifting off of his chest and he couldn’t help the laughter that bubbled up. He still felt sick, but there wasn’t much he could do about that. Dean rolled his neck, and stood up, so he was eye level with his partner.

“We’ll be okay, Cas.”

“Of course we will, Dean.”


	5. Chapter 5

Castiel watched as Dean climbed out of the Impala to greet Ash outside of the garage bay of his shop. It was called Lindberg&Son, because even though Ash didn’t currently have kids, he liked to be ‘optimistic’. Castiel slowly dragged himself out of the car as he watched Dean and Ash shake hands. His partner, in his slightly wilted suit, may have looked out of place next to the smiling mullet-haired man in coveralls, but the truth was, Dean knew just as much, perhaps more, about cars than Ash did.

As Castiel made his way over to the pair he could here the two friends talking.

“Take a guess, man, what do you think it was?”

Castiel rolled his eyes. This was the game Ash and Dean liked to play whenever Cas’ car was brought in to be fixed.

Dean rubbed a hand over his mouth as he appeared to think about it for a bit. “Well, the last time it was the starter. The time before that it was just the battery. I’m gonna have to go with solenoid?”

Ash threw back his head and laughed. “You ain’t wrong. Pretty easy fix,” Ash turned to Castiel. “You are all set to go, wing-man.”

“Thank you, Ash. I appreciate the quick service,” Castiel said sincerely.

“Anything for New York’s finest. I just put it on the card we already have on file for you, that cool?” Ash asked Castiel, as he and Dean followed him into the lobby area where Cas could sign the receipt and pick up his keys.

“That is quite satisfactory, Ash, thank you.”

“Alright, buddy, if you’re all set, I’m going to take off. I want to hit the store before Sam gets to the apartment,” Dean said as Cas signed the paperwork and stuck it in his coat pocket.

“Of course. Thank you, Dean.”

“You got it. Good luck on your, um, your date Saturday. Have a nice time, or whatever,” Dean was flustered and wouldn’t meet Castiel’s eyes. It was probably better, he just would have seen misery anyway.

“I will endeavor to do so.”

Dean laughed softly at that. “Maybe try not to talk too much like an encyclopedia. Not everyone will find that as endearing as I do.”

Castiel couldn’t help but smile fondly. He gave a short nod and headed over to his car. He heard the Impala start back up before he’d even unlocked the door.

* * *

 

 

Castiel couldn’t face going back to his empty house right away. In many ways it was his sanctuary, but on days like today, the silence was too loud. Instead, he headed over to Hael and Kevin’s house. Cas was always welcome at his sister’s home. It was rare for angel siblings to be as close as Castiel was with Hael and Gabriel. Part of it was being earthbound. The longer you stayed on earth, the more you felt emotions like humans. Not to say Castiel didn’t feel before his Grace Walk and subsequent choice to stay on earth. It was just different, magnified. It was like when someone walked through life, not knowing they were seeing everything blurry, until they put on glasses. It was like lifting a veil or removing a screen. Nothing was muted anymore. Everything was loud and bright. It was beautiful, delicious and painful all at once. Sometimes Cas wished he could turn it off. Put up a wall, just for an hour or two. Of course, he couldn’t. And once he met Dean for the first time, he didn't want too. To not be able to fully experience that pure light and goodness? Castiel would never give that up. And though he couldn’t put that wall up, he had a stellar poker face. He could make his expression cold and blank on the turn of a dime, which came in handy during interrogations. Not so much in personal relationships, as that look could often be misinterpreted as not caring or apathetic, when in reality, it was just a defense mechanism.

Castiel turned down Sandpiper Drive. Hael and Kevin lived at the dead end and he could see their basketball hoop from the entrance of the road. It was a quiet neighborhood, friendly. Castiel pulled into the driveway of the split level ranch. As he parked the car he could see the flowered curtains fluttering. He had barely closed the door to his Continental when his nephew came barreling out of the lavender painted door. Castiel laughed as Oliver’s soft little body, clad in Paw Patrol pajamas wrapped himself around Castiel’s knees.

“Hi Unca Cas,” came the muffled voice against Castiel’s knee-cap. He ruffled Olli’s soft black locks as he met his sister’s gaze from where she lounged against the doorjamb. A fond smile tugged at her lips as she watched them.

“Unca Cas,” Castiel’s attention was drawn back to Oliver. The child looked up at him, almond shaped eyes a deep, bright blue like his and Hael’s. Many of the angels from Cas’ clutch shared coloring. Except for Gabriel. But that was no surprise. With light brown hair and eyes like old gold, Gabriel was in a category all on his own. Gabe liked to say it was an Archangel perk, as obviously his looks were far superior to those of his siblings, and his short stature made him more ‘aerodynamic’. “Unca Cas, I’s talkin to you,” Oliver said again, tugging at Castiel’s trenchcoat.

“I’m sorry, Olli,” Castiel said as he leaned down to hoist his nephew onto his hip and headed back towards the house.

“Where Unca Dee?”

Castiel felt a comforting warmth spread through him at his nephew’s name for his partner.

“Uncle Dean had to go to the grocery store to buy salad and fruit and other healthy stuff for his little brother Sammy.”

“Sam’s not lil,” Oliver said petulantly and sighed heavily. His little pink lip poked out in a pout and Castiel chuckled.

“Sorry buddy. You’ll just have to make do with me this evening.”

“S’okay, “ the little boy said, squirming to get out of Castiel’s arms and run back to the battle raging on the Berber rug. Some Transformers were holding an alliance with a line of army men and a Minion against multiple Ninja turtles and some monster trucks.

“Don’t be offended,“ Hael said with a playful smile. “Dean just makes the best truck noises.”

Castiel couldn’t deny that. Uncle Dean definitely had him beat in the sound effects department. Be it playing with toys, or eating a good burger, kis-

“Staying for dinner, brother?” Hael’s voice cut through his musings and Cas nodded before going to the closet to hang up his trenchcoat.

“If you don’t mind.”

“You know you are always welcome,” Hael looked at him with concern. She walked over, wordlessly, and pulled him into a comforting embrace. Castiel felt her unseen wings, dove grey and spotted when on the earthly plane, enfold him.

“Rough day?” she murmured and Castiel gave a little laugh.

“Could have been better, ended okay. I just didn’t...I didn’t want to go back to an empty house. Where’s Kevin?” Castiel asked, grateful that Hael chose to accept the abrupt subject change. He made his way to the kitchen and pulled down a box of spiced chai tea. He held it up and arched a brow at his sister.

“Yes, please,” she said and Castiel pulled two oversized green mugs from the cabinet next to the sink. He filled the stainless steel teapot with water and set it on the burner before tearing open the individually wrapped tea bags and placing them into the mugs.

“Kevin switched shifts, to answer your question. Gabriel has a date or something,” Hael said as she opened the fridge to pull out a large rectangular dish covered in tin foil. “Which is fine, because he hates tuna casserole.”

* * *

 

 

Castiel had a relaxing night visiting with his sister and nephew. He helped give Olli his bath and read him his favorite story, No Jumping on the Bed by Tedd Arnold before he headed home for the evening. It was only 8pm, but he thought that maybe a glass of wine and a documentary would be enough to help him pass out for a little while. He didn’t need much sleep as an angel, but the little he got was precious. He would need it, if he was going to be able to handle going on a date the next night.

Just the thought had him drumming impatiently on the steering wheel as he waited for the light to turn green. Thinking about it was making him tense, which was counterproductive. He would deal with it on Saturday. Dean would say, Don’t stress, man. That’s future Castiel’s problem, fuck that guy. Cas chuckled to himself at the thought. Of course Dean was the real reason for his distress. Being in love with someone you couldn’t have was the most soul crushing, heart-wrenching thing in the universe. Castiel had come to understand that all too well.

When Castiel realized he had fallen in love with Dean, it had been a surprise. They had clicked as partners right away, They could speak without words, just communicating with their eyes, which in their line of work was rare in new partnerships. Trust like that often took years to cultivate. But for Castiel and Dean, it was seamless, immediate. From the very first day they had met, they had become friends as well. Dean had decided to take Castiel under his wing, as the saying went, and brought him to movie night where he met Charlie. Through Dean, Castiel was immersed in the world of science fiction and pop culture. He learned the difference between a good burger and an excellent burger. Dean taught Castiel the difference between quiet amusement and full-bodied laughter.

He’d also discovered jealousy, and that had been Castiel’s first clue that what he felt for his partner was more than just friendship. Castiel was used to Gordon and some of the others cops at the station bragging about their conquests with women. But when one day, Dean had alluded to them about a one night stand, and Castiel had seen the evidence of such in the broken cluster of capillaries on Dean’s neck, Castiel had felt ill. He hadn’t understood it, and as the weeks went by, he nearly forgot about it. Until one night when a group of them from the precinct went to the Roadhouse to grab a few beers. Castiel had spied Dean at the juke box, talking to a tall, fit man, with close cut blonde hair. The blonde man’s hand had been on Dean’s lower back, and Dean had been angled towards him and smiling his beautiful smile, and that sick feeling had come back. Castiel had not waited to see more, and gone home. But even then, Castiel still hadn’t understood his reactions, and he was too afraid to ask anyone. It felt weird to him, to ask Dean about his reactions to seeing his friend in intimate settings with others. If what he was feeling was romantic interest. He felt like it would have been somehow inappropriate.

It hadn’t been another woman or another man that did it though. No, something else, something horrible, had finally pushed Castiel into realizing that what he felt for Dean went far beyond friendship or a crush. His partner had been shot. They’d been searching for a rogue vampire that had been praying on the local college girls and had gotten the tip that he was squatting in one of two warehouses in the city, on opposite sides of the town. Castiel hadn’t wanted to split up, but back up was coming and Dean would not let worry for himself stop him from possibly saving someone else.

When Castiel got to his location and found it clear, he had headed to Dean’s location, only to find his partner in a pool of blood, barely hanging on, with an EMT angel working on him. Dean had caught the vampire, and had him cuffed, but what Dean and Castiel hadn’t realized while searching for one Abbot J. Hinkle, was that he’d had a partner in crime. A partner who used bullets instead of teeth to stun her victims. Cas had deduced later that the female had come upon Dean arresting Abbot and shot him in the back. Luckily, backup had arrived before she could do any more damage.

Castiel had taken charge of the scene, barking at the officers to take the vampires in and toss them into separate warded cells. He hadn’t let himself feel the fear that the angel, Anael, was not healing Dean fast enough. She had seemed to know not to protest when Castiel had taken it upon himself to aid her in the healing. Castiel had knelt at Dean’s side and his partner had managed a small quirk of the lips. Haha I win, he’d said. Cas had let out a relieved huff of laughter as he’d brushed his hand through Dean’s sweat dampened hair. He placed his other hand on Dean’s chest, fingers becoming tacky with Dean’s blood. Castiel had closed his eyes and sent his own healing light through Dean, envisioning it entering through his hand and traveling through Dean’s body alongside Anael's.

Once Dean had been healed on scene, Castiel had insisted that the two murdering bastards could wait until morning and that Dean needed to go home and rest. Yes, he was healed, but he’d still suffered a lot of blood loss and he was still fatigued, as was Castiel. So Dean had gone along with Castiel’s wishes under the condition that Cas come home and rest with him. Dean had known what that kind of healing did to an angel’s strength. It was why Anael’s shift had ended after healing Dean and Hester’s had started. It was why Castiel had looked like he could have fallen asleep. So Dean had had an officer bring Cas’ continental back to the station and despite Castiel’s protests, drove them back to Dean’s apartment in the Impala. It wasn’t until Castiel was curled up on the couch in a borrowed pair of Dean’s sweat pants and a band tee, holding a beer and staring blankly at Dr. Sexy M.D. did the full magnitude of what had happened to Dean, really hit Castiel.

* * *

 Aug 2016

 

Castiel tried to let the familiar theme music to Dean’s favorite show calm him down. The adrenaline rush of what had happened should have worn off by now. It had been almost two hours. Dean and Cas had put Dean’s phone on speaker and spoken directly with Lieutenant Singer, and he had agreed with Castiel’s assessment to let the blood sucker, who’d nearly killed his best friend, and her equally murderous partner stew in a cell. Dean had driven them back to his house where Castiel insisted Dean use his shower first and get changed into something more comfortable. Castiel didn’t think he could stomach to look at Dean’s blood soaked clothing for another minute.

Castiel had shooed Dean off to the bathroom, trying not to blush, because angels don’t blush, thank you very much, when Dean stripped down in front of him and went to his drawers for fresh clothes for the both of them. Castiel refused to let his eyes go any lower than the protection symbol tattooed on Dean’s chest, a twin to the one on his brother Sam. Castiel instead, had grabbed the soiled clothing from the carpet and carried them into the kitchen where he bagged them with Stop and Shop bags and put them in the trash. The whole time, his hands had been shaking. When Dean came out, freshly scrubbed in grey sweats and his favorite NYPD tee-shirt Cas had finally been able to breathe a little, but he was still unsettled. And he had blood in his hair from when he had agitatedly pulled at his scalp after helping to heal Dean. Normally, Cas wouldn’t indulge in a shower unless he was at home and headed for bed. Normally he would use his grace to freshen up, but he was still a little weak. If Castiel used Dean’s shower gel because the smell of it comforted him, no one else needed to know.

Now here he was, shoulder to shoulder on the couch, with his best friend, with his partner, safe and sound. Drinking Thighslapper ale and watching Doctor Piccolo seduce Doctor sexy by role playing a starstruck intern. Dean looked relaxed but Castiel just couldn’t settle. He kept stealing glances at Dean’s profile. He noted that Dean still looked a little pale, making the constellation of freckles across his nose stand out. He watched as Dean laughed softly at something that was said on the TV. He watched as Dean’s plush lips curved up into an inviting smile, and Castiel felt bile rise up in his throat and his breath hitch at the thought of never seeing that smile again.

“Cas? Hey, hey, Cas!” Dean’s voice seemed to come from very far away and it wasn’t until Dean’s hand touched his face that Castiel jerked back to awareness. Castiel looked towards the sound of Dean’s voice and his wide blue eyes clashed with concerned green.

“Castiel, you’re shaking. Are you okay?” Dean ran a hand down Castiel’s arm while the other cupped his jaw, tilting his head up to get a better look into his eyes. “Did you get hurt and I missed it?” Dean’s voice sounded pained at the very thought and Castiel wanted to reassure him, but he couldn’t speak. He could barely breathe. His own hand reached out to grip Dean’s shoulder, fingers digging in reflexively. He looked deep, and focused on the luminous light of Dean's soul. He tried to even his breathing, something that as an angel he didn’t really need to do. Inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale, to the pulsing rhythm of Dean’s heartbeat. When he finally spoke, it was in a harsh whisper.

“You nearly died today.”

Dean’s face morphed into one of understanding. “Cas, buddy. I’m okay.“

“No, Dean. You almost ceased to exist. I was late and if Anael hadn’t been there, you would have-you just-”

“Hey, shhh,” Dean tugged Castiel to him and enveloped him in his arms. Dean ran a soothing hand up and down Cas’ back. “It’s over now, okay? I’m fine.”

Castiel buried his face in the crook of Dean’s neck and inhaled his scent, leather, spice and sandalwood. His fingers clutched at the back of Dean’s shirt as Dean continued to whisper reassurances in Cas’ ear. They rocked back and forth, slightly, and the warmth of Dean’s body gradually caused the tremors to taper off. Eventually Cas eased back to look into Dean’s eyes. Dean gave a gentle smile.

“You okay there, man?”

Castiel continued to stare for a moment before leaning forward and pressing his lips to Dean’s in a chaste kiss. It was short, sweet and barely a whisper of flesh upon flesh, but it was enough to send all of Cas’ nerve endings fluttering. His eyes widened at what he had done.

“Dean, I-I’m sorry-”

That was as far as he got before Dean pulled Cas’ face back towards him to do it all over again. Only this time it wasn’t chaste. Dean licked at the seam of Cas’ mouth and Castiel parted his lips with a sigh, happily granting Dean access. His tongue slipped inside to slowly tangle with Cas’. One of them whimpered, Castiel couldn’t have said who, but he couldn’t be bothered to care. Not when he was feeling all these delicious tingles throughout his body, not when Dean was exploring his mouth and tugging at Cas’ hair, making the most erotic sounds. He could have kept on kissing Dean for an eternity. It wasn’t until the the air changed, the electricity nearly palpable, and Cas’ wings suddenly manifested, that he pulled back, astonished. They were arched high, and shimmering. Glossy black wings like spilt ink with swirling shades of indigo when they caught the light from the tableside lamp.

Dean was looking at him with nothing short of awe, hands already reaching out to touch. Castiel jumped back, horrified.

“Oh, no. No. no. no.”

“Holy shit, Cas!”

“No, no, no.”

“Dude… I can see your fucking wings!”

Castiel closed his eyes, grief overwhelming him. “I’m so sorry, Dean,” Castiel said, and tucked his wings back into the next plane of existence.

Dean stepped forward, but Castiel stepped back. “Why are you sorry, Cas? They’re fucking stunning. They look like silk. I don’t get it, why are you upset?”

Castiel opened his eyes and Dean must have seen the misery in them, because he blanched before asking, voice shaking, “Is something wrong? Are-are you sick or something?”

Castiel shook his head no. “Dean...do-do you know what it means when a human can see an angel’s wings?”

A slow smile stole across Dean’s face and he rubbed the back of his neck as his cheeks colored. “Well, I thought it meant that we were potential mates. That-that maybe you were in love with me?”

Castiel nodded sadly, which made Dean confused.

“And that makes you sad? Are you upset about loving me? Because I gotta say, Cas, I have been in love with you for awhile now and it’s kind of disheartening that I’m on cloud 9 right now, and you look like you’re at a funeral.” Dean’s voice revealed his hurt feelings and that gave Cas the courage to step forward into Dean’s space, wings, invisible once again, quivering behind him. He reached both his hands out and clasped Dean’s within them.

“Dean,” he began quietly. “I do love you. That was never more apparent to me than it was today, as I watched you lay on the ground, bleeding. I love you so much that it steals my breath. And the idea of forming a bond with you, of letting my grace merge with your magnificent, radiant soul… it fills me with awe and joy,”

“Then what-”

“We can’t, Dean,” Castiel’s tone was firm and put Dean’s hackles up.

“But why? If you love me, and I love you...I don’t understand.”

“It’s too dangerous, Dean. Our line of work. If something happened to me, you would die. Do you realize that? You wouldn’t just be sad, you wouldn’t just grieve. You would lay down, and within hours, you would die of a broken heart. I could never do that to you.”

Dean shook his head, “No. No Cas, you don’t get to just decide that we can’t be together because someday you might die and take me with you. People die everyday.”

“And people who do the work we do have a greater risk than most. Even angels. I will not be the reason your widowed mother and little brother lose you,” Cas’ voice was sharp and brooked no argument, but Dean didn’t care.

“That’s bullshit, Cas. Mom and Sammy would want us to be happy. You could die tomorrow by some freak with a stolen angel blade, or you could live forever, there is no predicting the future. But not being together because you’re waiting for it to happen? That’s no way to live,” Dean stalked forward and cupped Castiel’s stubbled cheeks. The angel closed his eyes at the touch before firmly grabbing Dean’s wrists and pulling his hands from his face.

“I will not be swayed on this, Dean.”

Dean cocked his head. “Is this because you're afraid of what will happen when I die? Are you afraid of leaving Hael and-”

“No, Dean. Well, of course, I would not want to put them through that, but I would see them again. Eventually, when it was their time to rest in heaven, I would see them. Time to angels is different. For us, a hundred years is merely a blink. But your family, Dean. Time is not a blink to them. They would suffer and ache for years if you perished because of me.”

Dean laughed, bitterly. “So I’m supposed to what? Just lock my feelings back up in a box and bury it? Pretend that I don’t want to run my hands through your hair and kiss you senseless? Just act like making you smile isn’t the best part of my day?”

“Dean, please. This is hard on me too.”

“Really, Castiel? Because from right here it seems like you’re pretty cool with it,” Dean’s voice had risen and his arms were crossed defensively.

“Do not mistake my composure for apathy. If you think that I don’t want you with every fiber of my being, you are unequivocally wrong. But we can’t. I will not be the one to take someone as precious as you are, as righteous, from this world. You need to let this go. As do I.”

Dean looked at Castiel, as he kept his face devoid of emotion, eyes hard and unmoving and Cas could tell when Dean finally saw that he was not going to budge. His shoulders slumped in defeat and he sank back down onto the sofa.

“Dean-” but Dean held up a hand, and shook his head. He braced his hands on his thighs, and rocked forward. Finally, he drew in a breath.

“Okay. I am going to let this go. For now. But we are not done with this conversation. I am going to give you some time to have your guilt ridden freak out about what could happen, blah, blah, blah, but this,” Dean gestured widely between them,” is not over. And if I didn’t know you as well as I do, if I wasn’t aware of how utterly stubborn you are, I would keep pushing. But because I DO know how stubborn you are, and I wouldn’t put it past you to seek a transfer, I am going to drop it.”

Castiel sighed, grateful for the reprieve. “Thank yo-”

“Don’t thank me,” Dean bit out, harshly. “I am pissed off, and horny, and so in love with you that I cannot see straight. So do not thank me for letting you get away with this when we could be doing far more pleasurable things right now. So just sit your ass down and watch this fucking episode with me while I put my feelings in storage, asshole.”

* * *

 

That had been nearly nine months ago. Dean had kept true to his word. He put his feelings in ‘storage’, and somehow, miraculously, things went back to normal. As normal as they could, knowing what they each knew about the other.

Dean had brought the subject back up,a few times, and each time Castiel fought with him about it. Dean called Cas a coward and Cas called Dean selfish. They hadn’t spoke for a whole week after that blowout, unless it was work related.

Castiel flicked the blinker as he turned onto his road. Lately, though, Dean’s arguments had taken on an air of sadness. Before, he had been confident and not just a little bit pissed off. But now, Cas could see, Dean was starting to believe that he was more invested than Cas was. Dean was wondering if Castiel just didn’t love him as much as Dean loved Cas. That couldn’t be further from the truth, but if believing that kept Dean alive, then Cas thought he might be okay with it. At the same time, the thought of Dean believing that Castiel’s feelings were indifferent gave him actual, physical pain. He looked at Dean sometimes, staring at Castiel with such profound sadness and his heart literally ached. It was getting harder and harder not to just show up at Dean’s door and beg him to forgive him for all of the anguish and claim each other.

Castiel sighed and pulled into his driveway. He put his car into park and turned off the engine. As he pulled the keys from the ignition, his phone vibrated in the pocket of his trenchcoat. He pulled it out, surprised to see a message from Sam.

_From Sam:.Dude, please come meet us at the Roadhouse tonight. I don’t know what crawled up Dean’s ass but he is in a bitch of a mood. Heeeeeeeelp me._

Castiel snorted. How to explain that he was the cause of that ‘bitch of a mood’.

_From You: Sam, I just got home. I just took the keys out of my ignition. Plus, I am sure your brother would like to spend time with you._

Castiel got out of his car and and headed up to his front door, reminding himself to water his plants in the morning. His phone vibrated again.

_From Sam: Come on, you know he won’t care. We don’t even have to tell him, it can be just like a coincidence._

Castiel rolled his eyes.

_From You: I have a hard time believing your brother won’t find it odd that I show up at a bar I rarely frequent unless he himself drags me out to it._

Before Cas could even get a key in the door, Sam was responding again.

_From Sam: Please. He’s had three shots of whiskey already, by the time you get here, he won’t question it, he’ll just be happy you’re here._

Castiel banged his head lightly against his front door. He was so going to regret this.

_From You: Fine. I’ll be there soon._


	6. Chapter 6

Dean scowled at the shelves in the whole foods section at _Stop and Shop._ Fucking _Kashi_ cereal cost twice as much as regular cereal.

“Screw this,” Dean muttered to himself, “Sam can have _Raisin Bran_.” It didn’t matter anyway. Dean knew that as soon as Sam smelled Dean’s blueberry pancakes and bacon, that the cereal would collect dust on the pantry shelf until the next time Cas teleported them somewhere and made him constipated.

Dean cruised down the aisles, hating the fluorescent lights. They reminded him of the morgue. Dean pushed the morbid thought aside as he wandered down the frozen food section. He debated on whether or not he should still get Cas’ favorite brand of burritos since he wasn’t going to be around tomorrow night. In the end he bought them anyway and restocked that special spiced chai tea that the angel loved so much.

Dean felt eyes on him as he put a dozen eggs into his carriage. A quick glance showed a curvy, athletic looking woman in yoga pants. Her eyes were wide and brown and her lip-gloss slicked mouth was pulled up in a flirtatious smile. Dean let himself return the smile, giving her a once over. Before Castiel, she would have been exactly the type he’d have gone for, and he knows by the way she was eyeing him that he could easily walk out of the store with her number.

Dean sighed and pushed on, metal carriage squeaking. He didn’t even bother to say hello properly or inquire after a name. There was no point. He knew what he wanted and it wasn’t some one night stand with some bendy yoga chick. Dean didn’t want a meaningless encounter followed by a 2am walk of shame. He wanted Castiel. Dean threw a package of black licorice- _gross Sam!-_ into the carriage a little harsher than he meant to.

This whole thing with Cas had him on edge all the time now. It was hard when you wanted to strangle and kiss someone at the same time. Worse, Dean was starting to become scared that he was the only one swimming in this emotional stew. That Castiel was, in fact, not as irrevocably far gone on Dean as Dean was on Cas.

When Cas had sprung that date news on him, Dean had felt nauseous. He’d wanted to rage, but heartache and dejection had won out. The thought of someone else touching his angel, putting thier hands, their mouth on him? Someone else’s fingers trailing through the midnight waterfall of his wings? God, the thought stole his breath. Trying to talk to Castiel out of it though, would do no good. Cas was set on this path of denying themselves, to keep Dean safe.

Dean wasn’t safe. He was breaking, slowly but surely. Little cracks in his heart that only Castiel could stitch back together. Dean hadn’t been serious when he mentioned getting back on the dating horse himself. It was just something he had said to break the tension, because even though he was a wreck inside, seeing Cas look at him so despondently, wouldn’t do.

Dean had thought that by now, Cas would have given in. He’d honestly thought Castiel would have seen that their love was worth the risk. But now...now Dean was afraid that Cas was going to move on and Dean was just going to be stuck. Dean didn’t want to become this sad, pitiable person that Castiel felt awkward around. All of these thoughts were depressing him. The weight was heavy on his chest and his eyes burned with the desire to curl up and cry in a way he hadn’t since his Dad died.

Dean ambled his way up towards the checkout line. A glance down at his wristwatch told him it was 5:30. He had a headache coming on and the monotonous _beep beep beep_ of his purchases being scanned seemed to match the pulse starting to throb at his temple. Sam would be arriving soon, may have already let himself into Dean’s apartment with his key. Though Sam would probably have texted him if he had. Dean needed to ditch this bad mood fast. And he needed some whiskey. Yes, it definitely felt like a _Jameson_ kind of night. Maybe he could convince his brother to go out to _The Roadhouse_ with him tonight. Friday night was half priced wings.

“That will be 36.65, detective.”

Dean opened his wallet and pulled out two twenties. “Thanks Krissy,” he said to the young clerk. Krissy Chambers was an art student at NYU. She wanted to be a police sketch artist, but Dean had seen her work at a fundraiser for the school that his sort of cousin Jo dragged him to. Krissy’s work was spectacular. Jo, who was in Krissy’s English literature course, said it was called photo realism. Dean didn’t know about all of that, but he did know that the painting of _Jim Parsons_ could have stepped right out of the frame and said _Bazinga!_ and Dean wouldn’t have been surprised.

On the way home, Dean’s phone chirped out: _If you don’t look good, we don’t look good_ \- signaling a text message from Sam. Dean just let it go, having been witness to too many tragedies on the road due to texting and driving. Dean could wait until he got back home,.

Dean pulled into his slot at his complex's parking lot. He grabbed the two grocery bags on the passenger seat with one hand and gripped his keys in the other. He walked towards his building, giving a short wave to Frank. He lived on the second floor and was currently smoking on the balcony. Frank Devereaux was a twitchy man in his fifties who was completely paranoid. The first time that Sam had shown up in a cab before Dean got home, he’d refused to buzz him into the building. Frank had been convinced that Sam was a spy from the government. Hence why Sam now had a key to the building and Dean’s front door.

“Hey Frank, my brother show up while I was gone?”

Frank blew out a cloud of smoke as he leaned over the railing to look down at Dean. “No. But C6 had a lot of packages delivered today. Might wanna keep an eye on that, detective.”

C6 was expecting their first child. Dean would bet his entire _Busty Asian Beauties_ collection that the only packages arriving were onesies and bouncy chairs. But he made sure to salute Frank seriously, “Will do, Frank. Stay vigilant.”

Dean lived in a first floor apartment. Dean’s motto was, the closer to the ground the better. He entered his apartment and flicked the switch by the doorway, illuminating the living room. He carried the groceries to the kitchen and threw his keys on the table. Dean put away the cereal in the cabinet before putting the milk, eggs and expensive as fuck _Honey Crisp_ apples Sam loved so much, in the refrigerator. Dean added the burritos to the Castiel side of his freezer, alongside the frozen White Castle burgers the angel liked to binge on during movie night. He added the new tea bags to the nearly deplinished canister on the counter next to the sugar. It was amazing Dean even _had_ canisters. If his mother hadn't insisted on dragging him to _Kohl's_ when he first moved in, he was sure he would have just stuck a spoon in the bag of _Dominos_ and called it a day.

Dean was in his room removing his gun belt when he heard his front door open.

“Dean?” his brother’s voice called out.

“Back here,” Dean called back from his bedroom.

Sam, with  his floppy hair, poked his head around the door jam before allowing himself to enter, leaning against the wall.

“Dude. Your upstairs neighbor just tried to get me to prick my finger to prove I wasn’t a clone.”

Dean couldn’t help the laugh that bubbled out.

“Seriously, Dean, I can't tell if he's for real, or if he is just fucking with me.”

“Yeah, me neither. You should see his cable access show. _City lights, city streets_. He wanders around town chain smoking and ranting about politics and government conspiracies.”

“Nice, I definitely want to check that out, “Sam deadpanned as he headed back into the living room.

“Woah.”

Sam looked at Dean nervously, fiddling with the bottom button of his green and black plaid overshirt. “Um, yeah… about that.”

Dean raised his brow at his brother before looking back to the front door where instead of Sam’s usual duffle, there was a large burgundy suitcase on wheels. Dean recognized it as the one their mother Mary had presented to Sam before he left for Stanford. “Something you wanna tell me, Sammy?” Dean couldn’t hide the concern in his voice.

“Oh! Oh no, its nothing bad, Dean. It’s just, I transferred to NYU.”

“You transferred?” Dean was surprised. Sam loved Stanford.

“Well, yeah. I mean, I hate only getting to see you and mom every few months. And NYU is just as good a school as Stanford. It offers all the same courses that I need to take.”

“Yeah, but your scholarships. Don’t get me wrong, Sam, I’d love to have you here-”

“I’ve only got a year and a half left, and my scholarships are transferable. Some of them anyway. Plus I have enough saved up from my job to cover everything else,” Sam was looking at him with huge, puppy dog eyes and Dean couldn’t help but grin. He would love to have his brother around permanently.

“So I assume you’re moving in, then?”

Sam bit his lip sheepishly. “Uh, yeah. Just until something in student housing opens up. Is that okay? God, I should have asked instead of springing this on you. I just wanted to surprise you.”

“Hey, hey, calm down Samantha, it’s fine. Hell, I am thrilled to have you here. But I feel It’s only fair to warn you, I keep odd hours. I get called out in the middle of the night, Cas and I are sometimes here working on a case till all hours and he winds up crashing on the couch. My life may not be conducive to studying, is what I am saying, but if you think you can deal with it, the guest room is all yours buddy.”

Sam let out a relieved sigh.

“Have you told Mom yet?” Dean asked, pulling a couple of _Budweisers_ from the fridge and handing one to Sam. Sam popped the cap off and shook his head.

“No, I tried texting her to call me when she got a chance, told her there was no emergency, but I don’t think she has any reception on that ship.”

“I still can’t believe Ellen talked mom into going with her on that singles cruise,” Dean laughed as he made his way back into the living room and relaxed into the couch.

“Me neither, but I’m glad. She’s been alone too long, you know?”

Dean just nodded, taking another swig of his beer.

“What about you, Dean. Seeing anyone?”

Dean scoffed. “You know me, Sam. No one can tame this wild, wild heart.”

“Yeah right. Too busy Larping and fighting crime with Cas?”

“Hey,” Dean said, aiming his bottle neck at Sam, “Larping is amazing, don’t knock it until you try it.”

“So what? No attractive orcs or fairies?” Sam teased, earning himself the finger. “So what's the plan for tomorrow, we going out or are we gaming it? Cause if we’re staying in, I owe Cas some of those buffalo wings from that place on 3rd,”

Dean felt his mouth tighten up. He cleared his throat. “Uh-no..I mean yeah, we’re staying in but Cas has a date.”

Sam’s brows rose in surprise. “Really? Wow, good for him,” he said with a nod. Dean nearly scowled at his brother before he managed to school his features back to neutral. “Is he going out with anyone you know?”

Dean shrugged his shoulders, jerkily. “I don’t know, I didn’t ask.”

“You didn’t ask?”

“Nope.”

Sam cocked his head. “He’s your best friend, why not?”

“The dude doesn’t have tell me everything Sam,” Dean snapped.

“Yeah but weren’t you the least bit curious? I mean, he’s an angel!”

“So? Angels date, Sam.”

“Yeah, but-”

“Can we just drop it, Sam? I’m not Castiel’s fucking keeper, he can date whoever the hell he wants.”

Sam held his hands up in surrender, “Woah, sorry Dean, I didn’t mean to piss you off.”

Dean sighed and shook his head. “No Sam, I’m sorry. It’s just been a long day. Actually, I could really use a drink,” Dean rolled his eyes when Sam looked pointedly at the beer in his hand, “I mean a real drink. You mind if we grab dinner at _The Roadhouse?_ ”

“Nah, man let’s go.”

* * *

 

Dean tried to shake off his dark mood once they got to the familiar bar and grille, but he knew he’s was being a dick. Dean felt bad, Sam didn’t deserve his attitude, but he can’t seem to get out of his funk. Sam cheering on Cas dating really bothered Dean, which wasn’t fair. Cas and Sam had gotten to be good friends over the past five years and Sam was just being supportive. It’s not like he knew about Dean’s feelings.

Dean looked at his brother sitting in their booth nursing a beer. He was texting someone. Probably telling his Stanford friends what a colossal douche his big brother was being. He’d left his brother at the table some twenty minutes earlier to shoot some pool. A couple of regulars, Andy and Michael, were playing and Dean had called winner. They had gained a couple of fans as well. Dean tossed back another whiskey from the tray of shots the waitress brought by, and caught the eye of groupy number one in a hot pink halter top and way too much make-up.

Dean expected it to be busier than it was. _The Roadhouse_ had an open floor plan. The billiard area was at the back of the bar. Two pool tables and an area to play darts encompassed the space. From Dean’s spot behind the table he could see into the dining area and noticed that it was only more than half full. On a Friday usually all of the low wood tables and navy vinyl booths would be filled up. He glanced there again and could see Sammy, no longer texting, but chatting with their waitress, Pam. Sam caught his eye and signaled that their food would be out in five minutes. That was fine. He was going to beat Andy with this last shot anyway. _Crack._

“Damn, man, every time,” Andy said, good-naturedly.

“Told ya he was a shark,” Michael said with a laugh, slapping Dean on the shoulder. “Up for another round?” Michael was a good looking guy. Black hair, killer smile, and he’d been into Dean for years.

“Maybe later,“ Dean said with a shake of his head. “My brother’s waiting over there and we got food coming.”

Michael leaned in close, and over his shoulder, Dean could see the other groupy, a redhead who’d been eying his ass through the whole game, look at both of them with a speculative gleam in her big blue eyes. “Well, if you change your mind,” Michael paused to run his hand down Dean’s arm, “I’ll just be over there,” he nodded towards his table while Andy just laughed and rolled his eyes.

Before Dean could respond, he felt the wind punched out of his gut. It was the oddest feeling. Just a quick flash of pain, like he’d been punched in the stomach. Dean bent over for a second to catch his breath. _Okay. Time to cut back on the whiskey._

“You alright, detective” Michael asked, concern in place of flirtatiousness.

“Yeah, thanks,” Dean said, lifting his head to smile reassuringly at Michael. But instead, his eyes were drawn to the dining area. When he looked towards his table he found his gaze caught and locked. _Castiel_. Dean felt his stomach flutter as his partner gave him a little wave, before taking his trenchcoat off. He was still dressed in his suit from earlier, but the top button of his dress shirt was undone and his tie was askew. Dean felt a wave of lust wash over him at the rumpled sexiness that was Cas and had to stifle a little whimper. He turned to Andy and shook his hand for a good game and gave Michael’s arm a friendly shove before making his way back to the table.

“I expected it to be more crowded,“ was what Sam was saying to Castiel by the time Dean got to their table.

“Yes, well, I heard on the radio that a few of the trains were down, some sort of power surge. A few of the roads are blocked off. Hello, Dean,” Cas finished, turning towards Dean with a soft smile.

“Heya, Cas. Didn’t expect to see you tonight.”

“I invited him,” Sam said proudly. “You were kind of a bitch tonight. Cas always puts you in a happier mood,” Sam grinned before taking a long pull off of his beer bottle.

Dean rolled his eyes. “Jesus Christ Sam, he’s not fucking prozac. Sorry you got dragged out here to be my mood stabilizer, man.” Dean said, a little embarrassed. _Great, how pathetic Cas must think I am_ he thought to himself. So sad that that he can’t even be decent company for his own brother.

“It’s perfectly fine, Dean. Besides, I have missed Sam,” Castiel said it so genuinely that Dean couldn’t help the smile the bloomed on his face. Dean settled back in his seat and signaled to Pam for a round for the table.

“Yeah, well you won’t have to miss him anymore. Did you tell Cas the news, Sammy?”

Sam filled Castiel in and Dean watched as two of the most important people in his life fell easily into animated conversation.

“So,“ Sam’s voice had taken on a teasing edge, “Castiel, I hear you’re missing game night with us losers tomorrow to go on a date. Who’s the lucky lady? Or guy?” Sam cocked his head, ”Do you even have preferences as an angel?” Sam didn’t seem to notice the tension at the table, dulled by the alcohol and low hum of the diners around them.

Dean felt his stomach drop as he had a running mantra of _I don’t wanna know I don’t wanna know_ running through his mind. There was a buzzing in his ears as Castiel answered Sam.

“No. Angels are indifferent to gender,” Conversation halted as Pam came back with three _Budweisers_ , a basket of wings and mozzarella sticks.

“So, who is it? Where’d you meet?”

Dean noticed that Castiel was steadfastly avoiding his gaze. What looked like normal awkward Cas behavior to Sam was what Dean recognized as uncomfortableness. Cas’ eyes flicked to Dean’s for a split second before turning back to Sam.

“We met on a case, actually. He works out of a different precinct. He’s an angel named Balthazar.”

_Despair, grief, self-loathing, hopelessness, and utter pain._

Dean wallowed in it, drowning. He vaguely heard a harsh intake of breath, but was too trapped in his own nightmare to register who it was. God, it hurt to even _breathe_ . Balthazar. _Balthazar._ Of course. Cultured, gorgeous, seductive Balthazar. The complete package. It made total sense, they would be _stunning_ together. Dean felt so stupid. No wonder it was always so much harder for him than it was for Castiel. Why would Cas be pining for him when he had someone like Balthazar waiting in the wings? Dean felt sick and just _bone deep_ tired. He took a deep breath, forcing his feelings down and carefully schooling his expression to one of support. He looked at Sam when he spoke, though. He couldn't look at Cas, not yet. Not without everything he was feeling and trying to suppress coming to surface through his eyes.

“He’s, uh, yeah, he’s a good guy. Good detective. Helped us take down a siren that was targeting wealthy widowers.”

Sam grinned. “So, he’s got the best friend stamp of approval, huh?”

_Don’t throw up don’t throw up don’t throw up._

“I just want Cas to be happy,” was Dean’s quiet reply before _finally_ allowing his gaze to meet the angel’s. When it did, all of his other feelings fell away to one of concern.

“Cas, man, you okay?”

Castiel’s face was paler than he’d ever seen it. His cobalt eyes were wide and almost fever bright. But his expression. His expression was _anguished._

“Dean,” was all he said, his gravel-laced voice an agonized whisper.

Dean looked at him, puzzled, until- Oh. _Oh_. Well, fuck. That was unexpected.

 


	7. Chapter 7

Castiel drummed his fingers on the steering wheel. If there was one thing he missed while being earthbound, it was flying. Just being able to go two or three miles at a time before exhausting his grace was rather annoying. As much as he wanted to just get there, at least he wasn’t stuck on the 4 and 5 trains. The D.J. on the radio had mentioned some kind of power surge and delays. 

Cas was stupid. Utterly and wretchedly stupid. That had been the conclusion he had come to in the car on the way to meet Sam and Dean. The irony that Sam had asked him to come out tonight to cheer Dean up, when he was essentially the reason why Dean was upset in the first place was not lost on him. Cas had made a complete mess of everything. He wished he’d never said yes to that date. The only reason he’d even agreed to go was so that Dean could begin to move on, even if Castiel never would.

When he pulled his Continental into  _ The Roadhouse  _ parking lot, he could see the Impala all the way in the back and a smile stole across his face. Dean always parked way in the back in crowded places, so his Baby wouldn't get hit.

Castiel perused himself in the rearview mirror. He looked tired. There were bags under his eyes and his mouth was drawn up tight. He looked older, though he hasn’t been officially earthbound long enough for any true aging to begin. Castiel, in reality, was miserable. More importantly, he was a coward. Dean was right. Keeping them apart? For what? The  _ possibility _ that something might happen? He was an Angel of the Lord. Who was more qualified to keep Dean safe than him? Not that Dean wasn’t capable. Dean was brave, quick on his feet and had a natural instinct that had saved himself and others numerous times. Cas raked his hands roughly through his hair, gearing himself up to face his best friend. He had to face him first, then he would figure out what to do.

When Castiel walked into  _ The Roadhouse  _ he was enveloped by a cacophony of sounds. Clinking glassware, the crack of pool balls and the soft hum of voices as people chatted amongst themselves. The TV above the bar was broadcasting a baseball game. Looked like the  _ Yankees _ were down by two against the  _ Orioles _ . The air was heavy with the smell of fried food, but Castiel wasn’t the least bit hungry. His stomach was still too knotted for food.

Castiel spotted Sam right away, nursing a beer at a nearby table. It was hard to miss someone that tall and broad shouldered. As he made his way over to Sam, Castiel noticed that Dean was not over there with him. His bright blue eyes scanned the room.

When he spied Dean smiling at an attractive man who was running his hand down Dean’s arm, Castiel felt like he had been sucker punched in the stomach. Castiel felt himself glaring and deliberately made an effort to turn away to greet Sam and remove his coat. Of course, he couldn’t help but to look over at Dean again. Their gazes locked and held and Cas gave a little generic wave. Castiel draped his trenchcoat over the back of one of the chairs before settling down into the seat.

“How are you, Sam?”

“Hey, Cas! Thanks for coming,” Sam looked at Castiel with a wide smile and surveyed the room. “I expected it to be more crowded.”

Castiel side-eyed Dean as he approached the table. “Yes, well, I heard on the radio that a few of the trains were down, some sort of power surge, a few of the roads are blocked off,” Castiel turned his attention to his partner, “Hello, Dean.”

“Heya, Cas. Didn’t expect to see you tonight.”

Sam explained how Dean’s less than stellar attitude had led to him inviting Castiel, which wound up with Cas being compared to pharmaceutical products. Dean apologized to him for being dragged out. Castiel captured Dean’s gaze, falling into green pools flecked with gold.

“It’s perfectly fine, Dean. Besides, I have missed Sam,” Dean broke out into a fond smile. Castiel had to force his attention back to Sam when Dean mentioned that the future lawyer to be had news. Cas was thrilled to learn that Sam had transferred to NYU. Sam was an intelligent young man with a good head on his shoulders.Cas fell into an easy conversation with the younger Winchester. While they talked, Cas could feel the weight of Dean’s stare… and then Sam asked about his date. A heavy feeling of dread overwhelmed him, and his stomach lurched. Sam was asking him about an angel’s sexual preference, which was a little awkward for him. Partly because Dean was there, looking anywhere but at him, and partly because Dean was the only one he had ever felt such a strong attraction to in the first place.

There was a brief reprieve when their waitress Pam brought by their food and drinks.

“So who is it,” Sam asked after Pam left.”Where did you meet?”

Castiel could not make himself look at Dean. He wasn’t sure what to say. Mainly because he’d already decided that he would meet with Balthazar tomorrow evening and explain why it just wouldn’t work out. That would be the polite thing to do. Plus, it would give him time to work out what he wanted to say to Dean.

“We met on a case, actually. He works out of a different precinct. He’s an angel named Balthazar.”

As soon as the words left his lips, Castiel sucked in a lungful of air as an overwhelming sadness took over his body. He felt as though he were drowning.  _ Oh God, it hurt. _ Wave after wave of despair and grief crashed over him.  _ What was this? _ Why did he feel like sobbing and vomiting all at once? He vaguely heard Sam asking Dean’s opinion but Castiel couldn’t really concentrate when he felt like he was dying inside.

_ Nausea, grief, woe, resignation. _

“I just want Cas to be happy,” the words permeated through as Cas forced himself to push through the staggering emotions flooding him and meet his best friend’s gaze.

And that’s when he knew.  _ Oh father _ , he knew. This was  _ Dean _ . This was his love, his partner, his dearest friend, and he was  _ breaking _ . Dean was falling apart, drowning in loss and rejection and hiding it under a calm face and an open smile. Castiel couldn’t breathe.  _ How the fuck was Dean breathing right now? _

“Dean,” Cas whispered in agony. Dean’s eyes widened and Cas could see when it clicked. The shock, the embarrassment layered on top of all of the rest.

Somehow, without the ritual of combining his grace with Dean’s soul, they were bonded. All of Castiel’s good intentions were for naught. The bond was set, only breakable by death, and even then, not really. Not when one followed the other into the afterlife and eternal heaven. They were soulmates, bondmates and Castiel knew that if it was this strong without consummation, that when they finally did complete the ritual, it would only grow stronger. They would deal with it when the time came though, because right now, Dean was terrified. He was ashamed and embarrassed and just sick, and Castiel could feel that it was because he had given up. Dean believed he was alone in his feelings. Castiel could sense it, so clearly, as though Dean were speaking to him. This underlying feeling of self-loathing. Castiel could feel that Dean believed he’d forced his emotions on Cas because he hadn’t been strong enough to push them down. His beautiful, selfless love was afraid that Castiel was going to lash out in anger. So Cas did the only thing he could think to do. He stood up and surged forward across the table.

“ _Ol Monons_ ,” he whispered. Cas’ hands reached out to grip Dean’s face as he pulled the man in for a wet, open-mouthed kiss.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ol Monons: My heart


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [](http://imgur.com/s4OiduN)   
> 

Holy fuck, he knew. Castiel fucking _knew_ just what was floating through his head right now. How did this happen? Dean felt rising panic. Cas was going to be pissed. Fucking angel had a date with _Mr. Perfection with a side of accent_ tomorrow and here was Dean, _imprinting_ on him like a fucking werewolf from _Twilight_. What was he gonna do? What should he say? Despair was warring with embarrassment and Dean thought he might actually have a heart atta-

“Hmmp,” Dean was vaguely aware of the surprised noise that came out of his mouth as Castiel’s soft, plush lips descended on his so fast, that he could do nothing but react. If Sam was shocked or for that matter, even speaking, Dean would not be able to tell because all he could focus on was the taste of Castiel in his mouth.

All sound except that of the slickness of their joined lips, ceased to exist. Dean mirrored Cas’ movements and cupped the angel’s stubbled face, thumbing at his cheekbones as they continued to kiss fervently. Cas tasted sweet, like honey and rainwater, and Dean wanted to drink him in, he wanted to _take take take_. The table was digging into his thighs from where he was leaning over to clutch at Castiel, but he didn’t care. God only knew how long he would get to have this, so he would revel in it as long as he could, for however long Cas allowed it.

Cas broke away for a moment just to whisper against his lips, tone low and ragged, “Forever. You can have it forever,” was what he said before his eyes slipped shut and he reclaimed Dean’s mouth once more. The elation Dean felt at those words bubbled inside him, encompassing his whole being and he felt Castiel’s fingers inch up into his hair and grip tightly at the strands, anchoring Dean even more as they nipped and sucked, their kiss tapering down from wild to languid. When Dean finally felt the need to breathe, he pulled back with a gasp. Castiel cupped the back of Dean’s neck, bringing their foreheads together. For a moment green stared into blue as they caught their breath, until suddenly, Dean began to laugh euphorically. Not long afterward Castiel joined in, his eyes crinkling, nose scrunching up in the way that Dean always thought was too adorable for words.

“What the fuck was that?!”

Their surroundings slowly started to seep back in as Sam’s gobsmacked voice cut through Dean and Castiel’s perfect bubble of rapture. Dean turned to look at Sam, and Castiel took the opportunity to nuzzle into the crook of Dean’s neck. The feeling of Cas scenting against his skin was not helping him find words.

“Uh, huh?” was his brilliant response.

“I said, what the fuck was that? Why does Cas look like he wants to climb you like a tree? How long has this been going on?”

“Um…,” Dean wondered when he forgot the ability to speak actual words. Castiel gave his neck a gentle kiss, making Dean shiver, before the angel pulled back far enough to look at Sam.

“A long time,” Cas’ voice was nearly a growl. “In silence, we have loved for a long time. It was time to break the silence,” Castiel finally sat down, but his hand reached for Dean’s and he happily laced their fingers together as he took the seat next to the angel. Dean didn’t think Sam could look more confused if he tried. Dean figured that was fair. He was confused as fuck as well.

Sam tilted his head in a eerily similar way to Cas, and his expression was baffled. “The night before your big date?” he asked the seraph.

Castiel shrugged, not answering. Dean sighed and rubbed his free hand over his face. “I don’t have a bunch of answers for you right now, Sammy. Cas and I, we obviously have a lot to talk about,” Dean said, turning to look at Cas, only to find him already staring back, intensely.

“ _Noib oadriax nanaeel,_ ” Castiel said and Dean nodded. Castiel cocked his head to the side. “ _Ol om ollog_?” Cas’ face looked shocked and Sam was staring at him like he had two heads.

“Dude, since when do you speak Enochian?”

“Sam, what the hell are you talking about?” Dean grabbed a mozzarella stick out of the paper lined basket on the table and ate half of it in one bite. His stomach felt like it was trying to eat itself. He supposed it had been awhile since he hadn’t felt like it was tied in knots. No wonder his appetite came back with a vengeance. He took another and slathered it in marinara.

“Dean, I just spoke to you in Enochian and you understood me,” Castiel’s voice was filled with awe. Dean swallowed a mouthful of cheese, and thought back to what Cas had just said. Holy shit, he did! What the hell did that mean?

“I don’t know, man. I said we had a lot to talk about and you said ‘yes we do’.”

Castiel nodded. “That’s correct. But I said it in Enochian. I was mostly talking to myself. And then I said, ‘you understood me?’, and you did. This is… astounding.”

Dean licked his fingers of the grease as he thought about it. He had a sudden thought that brought a wide smile to his face. “That’s awesome. It’s like I’m a parselmouth.”

Castiel chuckled and leaned forward, resting his forehead against Dean’s shoulder, while Sam looked on impatiently. Dean could tell Sam was annoyed at not knowing what exactly was going on. _Well, join the club, Sammy_ , Dean thought to himself.

“Say something else. Quiz me,” Dean said, a little excited.

Castiel’s raised his eyebrow in that way that often made Dean think of handcuffs and safewords.

“Quiz you?”

“Yeah, maybe it was just a fluke. I mean, I know what you sound like when you use angel speak. It’s all guttural. But I have definitely never understood it before. You sometimes mutter in Enochian under your breath,“ Dean reached out and trailed his thumb across Cas’ bottom lip, and he was pleased to see the blue eyes dilate in reaction. “I usually imagine you’re cursing me out.”

Castiel snorted. “Sometimes I am.”

“Come on, for science Cas,” Dean teased and Sam nodded eagerly.

“Fine,” Castiel said with a sigh, leaning in close to Dean’s face. “ _Geh ol ror od oiveae._ ”

Dean blushed and gently pushed Cas’ face away with the palm of his hand, laughing. “Sap.”

“What? What did he say?” Sam bounced in his chair like an overeager puppy.

“He _Game of Throne’d_ me,” Dean said, with a soft smile.

Castiel’s brow furrowed in confusion. “I fail to see what a diversion of royalty has to do with you being my sun and stars.”

Dean snickered and couldn’t help but to lean forward to kiss Cas on his forehead.

“That’s going to take some getting used too,” Sam said with a smile. “But I am glad you’re not being a bitch anymore, Dean. Thanks for that, Cas.”

“You’re quite welcome, Sam,” Castiel said sincerely while Dean just flipped him off.

“You’ll let me know what’s going on, though, once you figure it all out?” Sam’s tone turned serious. “Because it looks to me like you two are bonded, which is great. I am super happy for you. But that… that’s a big deal. You both need to be extra careful now. You’re basically living for two now.”

“Yeah Sam, I know. Believe me, I know,” It was why Castiel hadn’t let them bond in the first place. He wondered if the angel was upset about having his hand forced. He looked over at Cas, to see if he was reading him, but the angel was not studying him in anyway differently than he normally did. Dean knew that when angels and humans bonded, they could sense each other’s feelings during extreme distress or emotional situations, but maybe they had used their quota up for the night.

“Sam, as always, I will endeavor to do everything in my power to keep your brother safe as I know he will for me.”

Dean found himself leaning against Cas, and yawning. “Wow, sorry guys. I didn’t realize how tired I was. It’s, uh, it’s been a long couple of days,” Dean felt wrung out. It was like a weight had been lifted and all he wanted to do was sleep and recover. But he also didn’t want to be away from Cas. Not now when he was allowed to call him _his._

Gentle hands brushed at the nape of his neck and Dean sighed at the feeling. “Indeed it has been a long few days. Perhaps Sam would not be offended if you came home with me tonight? I feel the desire to wrap you in my arms as we slumber.”

God, he should sound so ridiculous when he said stuff like that. Instead, it made Dean’s heart trip and his eyes burn with emotion.

“I don’t think that will be a problem will it, Sam?” Dean reached into his pocket and pulled out the keys to Baby.

“What? You ditching me my first night here?” Sam teased.

“Well, seeing as how you’re not leaving anytime soon, college boy, I _could_ just see you tomorrow,” Dean pointed a finger gun at him, and clicked his tongue.

“Yeah, yeah, get out of here. Go talk your shit out,”

Dean broke out into another yawn and Castiel spoke up. “We’ll talk in the morning. For now, we sleep.”

Dean nodded in agreement as he stood up. He patted Sammy on the shoulder before holding a hand out to Cas, and lighting up on the inside when it was grasped with no hesitation. They were silent as they walked out of the bar. Dean was grateful the owner, Ellen, wasn’t there to harass him and Cas about their new… thing.

It was warm out, and the sky was clear. The stars were bright and when he looked up, Dean could make out the big dipper easily. They made their way, clasped hands swinging gently, to Cas’ Continental. Before Dean could get into the car, Castiel crowded him up against the door.

“I do not feel forced into anything, Dean.”

Dean narrowed his eyes. “We’re gonna talk about this mind reading thing. I get it if you can feel my feelings, or whatever, but no intentionally reading my mind.”

In lieu of answering, Cas leaned forward to capture Dean’s lips with his own. It was soft, gentle and over too quickly. Castiel only let go of his hand long enough for them both to get settled in the car with their seatbelts on. He then laced his fingers with Dean’s again, dragging Dean’s hand to rest on his right thigh. Cas started the car and Dean took it upon himself to change the station from talk radio to a classic rock. Cas rolled his eyes good naturedly as Dean hummed along to _Sister Christian._

Despite all the unanswered questions and the fact that they definitely had things to talk about, the ride was so...serene. Dean couldn’t remember the last time he felt so much at peace. It was as though everything was as it should be.

When they got to Cas’ house, there were no words. Dean followed Cas inside, toeing off his shoes and placing them on the mat by the door. Castiel locked the door before taking Dean’s hand again and leading him to his bedroom. Once there, Cas nodded towards the attached bath. Dean went into the bathroom. After relieving himself he washed his hands before digging in Cas’ drawer for a spare toothbrush. He brushed his teeth, staring at his reflection as he did so.  Dean was aware that the calm, tranquil feeling that he had right now might be gone in the morning, but for right now, he was good. Great, even. Dean was where he should have been months ago. Getting ready to slip into bed at the end of the day, with the man he loved. Dean rinsed and spit and dried his face on a yellow hand towel and made his way back into the bedroom.

Castiel had changed into a pair of plaid sleep pants and left his chest bare. The bed covers were turned down and Castiel brushed a hand down Dean’s arm as he passed him to take his turn in the bathroom. Dean stripped down to his tee-shirt and boxer briefs, placing his folded clothes on the windowseat. Dean climbed into the bed, relishing in the feeling of silky, cool sheets, lying on his side, facing the bathroom.

Castiel came out a few minutes later and slipped in beside Dean. Cas flicked his hand in the air and the lights went out. Without words, Cas slipped an arm over Dean’s middle and pulled him back against his chest. That was fine, Dean had no issue being the little spoon. He felt warm, and safe and if he wasn’t mistaken, the soft silkiness of invisible feathers. Dean sighed as Cas placed a gentle kiss just below his ear. Dean could feel himself already starting to slip under. Half of him was upset that he was in bed, with his soulmate, the love of his life, and all they were going to do was sleep. But the other half relished in the perfect domesticity of it all. He nestled back more and one of Cas’ legs, warm and strong, nudged between Dean’s. Just as Dean was on the edge of sleep, he heard Cas whisper.

“ _Olani hoath ol._ ”

“I love you, too, Cas,” he murmured before drifting off.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Noib oadriax nanaeel: Yes we do  
> Ol om ollog: You understood me?  
> Geh ol ror od oiveae: You are my sun and stars  
> Olani hoath ol: I love you


	9. Chapter 9

It was a surreal feeling when Castiel awoke. Only needing a few hours of sleep, Castiel had been up since 3am. He could have slipped from the bed to read or watch trash tv, but he hadn’t wanted to leave the bed. Not when he had Dean wrapped in his arms and enfolded in his transparent wings. It was going on 4:30 now, but his exceptional vision, perks of being an angel, made it easy to see Dean in the inky pre-dawn darkness. Castiel had spent the time making constellations out of the freckles across Dean's cheek and down his arms. So far, he’d found a stargazer lily, a humming bird and a candy cane, which he traced with an unseen feather.

Castiel nuzzled the back of Dean’s neck, scenting along the hairline as he breathed him in. Spice and sandalwood and a touch of leather, though to anyone else, they would only smell a hint of sweat and Dean’s coconut shampoo. Castiel could smell Dean’s essence and he couldn’t help but wonder what kind of bouquet he gave off to Dean.

Dean sighed in his sleep, a soft sound, before his breathing evened out again. Castiel had observed over the years, that Dean was a quiet sleeper. Many late night movie and gaming sessions ended with Dean passed out on his, Charlie’s or Cas’ couch. He was usually a light sleeper as well. Alert. Castiel believed it was because of their work. Dean was always ready to jump when a call came in. If his cell phone buzzed, he would wake immediately. But tonight, Dean slept deep. It was the easiest and least restless sleep he’d ever witnessed his partner have. Castiel did not think it was conceited of him to believe it had something to do with their new relationship status.

Now that he’d let go of his resolve to deny himself a future with Dean, Castiel had found such peace within himself. It was as though all the reasons and doubts that had reigned his mind before, had all fluttered away. Cas knew Dean was worried that he was only on board now because they essentially had no choice. He’d picked that up from Dean last night. But Castiel hadn’t lied when he told Dean he wasn’t being forced. Cas had already decided before he went into _The Roadhouse_ , that he’d had enough of his self-imposed misery.

What really had Cas’ head spinning was the fact that they had bonded without him being aware of it. He’d never heard of that. Cas had never heard of the bond happening without consummation. Castiel couldn’t help but wonder how long it had actually been since the bond first bloomed. Dean had always been easy for him to read. It was not surprising to Cas that he may have read Dean’s emotions without realizing it. Just mistaking it for his own tumultuous feelings. Maybe it had been forging, lowkey, for a long time. Cas wondered how many stomach aches or bouts of nausea were actually his own and how many in reality, came from Dean. Cas brushed a hand against Dean’s forehead, pushing his soft honey-toned hair back. Castiel then held Dean a little tighter and the man settled more against him in his sleep.

Feeling Dean’s pain while sitting at that table had been tortuous. The grief and hopelessness was steal-your-breath staggering. Castiel had had to fight back tears. Knowing that Dean was feeling that way because of him made him sick. Dean felt things so strongly and Castiel couldn’t begin to fathom how Dean had kept his face so impassive.

Castiel was no stranger to despair. He had eons to practice stoicism, but in the sanctuary of his own home, Castiel had cried. He had railed at the unfairness of it all. That he would fall irrevocably in love with a fragile human. But none of that mattered now. Dean was Cas’ and Castiel would spend the rest of their lives making up for every stitch of pain he’d caused in his futile attempt at protecting Dean. All that had done was make them more miserable than should be possible. Castiel didn’t know if he could forgive himself for what his fear had nearly cost them and the pain he’d put Dean through.

Castiel wondered if Dean could feel Cas’ emotions as easily as Cas could feel his. If so, he also wondered if perhaps Dean hadn’t recognized it when it happened because he spent so much time guarding his own feelings. That his own sorrow was drowning out Cas’.

He needed to speak with Gabriel. The archangel might have answers for them. Answers for what made the two of them so special that they could bond without the merging of grace and soul through intimate relations.

The room was slowly getting brighter. Light was peeking in through the blinds making a lined pattern across the sheets. Castiel propped himself up on his elbow as he gazed down at Dean. He watched the way his eyelashes fell in crescents against his skin, hiding eyes the color of lush rolling hills. Dean’s hair stood up in tufts and Castiel knew when he awoke, half would be matted to his head, much the way his own dark locks probably were.

“I can feel you staring at me, creeper,” Dean’s sleep roughened voice startled Cas out of his musings. Castiel felt a slow smile tug at his lips as Dean rolled onto his back to peer up at Cas with half-mast eyes.

“Hello, Dean.”

“Heya, Cas.”

For a moment, they became lost in their own bubble, drinking in the sight of each other. Once again Castiel was struck with awe that they were finally here. Tangled together, and with such a sense of belonging. Castiel didn’t think he had ever felt more content. He closed his eyes and Dean reached up to brush his cheekbones.

“Can’t believe I get to touch you like this now,” Dean whispered, trailing those fingers down the side of Cas’ face and moving to travel over his chapped lips. Dean’s thumb continued to brush the soft pink flesh and Cas found himself sighing into it. The desire to close his mouth around that digit and suck was strong. He heard Dean gasp quietly and Castiel’s eyes flew open.

“Is that you? Do you...do you want me?” The question held wonder and Castiel broke out in a fond smile.

“Dean, I always want you. I have for so long. I am truly sorry that you ever for one second felt that your feelings were one sided.” Castiel watched as a blush climbed up Dean’s sharp cheekbones. Feelings were not something that Dean Winchester liked to talk about or dwell on, as for some reason they tended to embarrass the man.

Dean cleared his throat. “It’s okay. You just always seemed so cool about it. I guess it just felt like, I don’t know, like I was this guy with an annoying crush and you just had to deal with it,”

“Oh, Dean, no. You never would have seen my wings if my feelings weren’t as strong as yours are. I hope you understand that. They could never have appeared to a human unless they were to be my mate. I handled things badly, I am aware. And I know you worry that I am only here with you now, because I have no choice,” Dean looked away at that, a guilty expression on his beautiful face, “and I will tell you as I told you yesterday, that is not true. I had every intention of ending our suffering right after I met with Balthazar. I felt like he deserved to be let down in person.” Cas could feel the small flash of jealousy that flared in Dean, followed by a sense of understanding.

“Yeah, he’s a good guy. Breaking up with him by text would be a douchebag move,” Dean admitted and Castiel chuckled.

“It was one date, Dean, not a relationship. One date I never even made it to.”

Dean glowered at him in annoyance. “Are you going to be able to feel everything I am feeling now? I thought it was only supposed to happen during extreme circumstances, or like when we have sex?”

Castiel looked at Dean tenderly. “It will taper off, it’s just because it’s new to you. Though we could have been bonded for awhile, it is only now that we are acknowledging it, so everything is open.”

“But I don’t seem to feel you the way you feel me. Maybe it’s not fully formed?”

Castiel cocked his head and felt a flash of affection aimed in his direction. “After what I felt from you last night I-” Castiel’s breath hitched as guilt and sadness overwhelmed him.

Dean sat up. “Woah. I felt that. Hey, hey Cas,” Dean cupped Cas’ cheeks and turned him so they were face to face. “None of that, okay?”

Cas nodded but his breath still hitched a bit as he spoke. “After last night, I thought that perhaps your own intense feelings were drowning out my own. Or the fact that we were often in a similar state of distress, that you would not necessarily realize the pain you were feeling wasn’t just yours, but mine as well. Why would you? I have never heard of an angel and a human bonding without intercourse.”

Dean chuckled softly. “You make it sounds so sexy, Cas,” he said with a salacious wink. “So how do we know we are fully bonded? I mean, are we at the ‘you croak, I croak’ stage, or is it just nifty mind reading telepathy stuff for now?”

Castiel reached his hands into the air, interlacing his fingers as he stretched. Dean’s eyes followed his movement and Castiel found he really enjoyed the weight of Dean’s gaze on his body. _Wait, what had Dean asked him again?_ Oh, yes.

“I’m not sure, honestly. I think our best bet is to talk to Gabriel,” Castiel said and Dean flopped back on the bed with a groan.

“Dude, really?”

Castiel huffed out a laugh. “I’m afraid so. He is an archangel, you know. He’s our best bet. And no, before you ask, I am not going to change my mind and put a stop to this,” Cas gestured between them with his hand, "Even if we aren’t at the ‘you croak, I croak’ stage. I am all in, _ol monons_ , I promise. But I believe we should hold off on that aspect until we know for sure anyway,”

Castiel felt the relief his words brought Dean before he felt his annoyance.

“Damn. I guess since we’ve waited this long already,” Dean gave a long suffering sigh. “Fuck, Cas. I can’t believe we have to talk about our sex life with your dick of a brother.”

Castiel brought their lips together in a chaste kiss before he grinned. “I will make it up to, you, I promise.” A bolt of lust shot through him as Dean decided chaste wasn’t good enough. In a flash, Dean had Castiel underneath him, arms pinned above his head, hands circling his wrists. Cas, of course, was easily strong enough to reverse the positions, but he was too stunned to do more than whimper when Dean deliberately grinded against him. Cas was aware that he was holding his breath as he was caught up in an intense stare down with Dean. The freckled man leaned forward to brush his lips with Cas’ and Castiel opened his mouth with a sigh. Dean slipped his tongue in to explore and Cas shuddered. Feeling Dean’s warm solid weight against him, as the man continued to sip from Cas’ mouth, deepening the kiss was setting off little fires in his body.. Their breath mingled and Castiel tugged at his arms, wanting to twine them around Dean’s strong neck. With every push of Dean’s tongue against his own came a little shallow thrust of hips that Cas greedily matched. Heat was rapidly coiling in his stomach and Dean’s body trembling against his just made him want more. Cas opened his legs, wider, an invitation for Dean to rut harder against him as Castiel wrapped his pajama clad legs around Dean’s waist, heels pushing against Dean’s ass, covered only by a thin pair of boxers.

Castiel could feel the hard line of Dean’s cock as it rubbed against his own. They rocked together, shaking. Dean’s hands, no longer pinning Cas down, had drifted to his hair, fisting and pulling at the dark strands, just enough to hurt deliciously. They rocked harder, soft, wet kisses becoming filthier and Dean sucked on Castiel’s bottom lip before giving it a bite. The sharp feeling went straight to Cas’ leaking cock and he moaned into Dean’s mouth. Dean answered by thrusting harder, their heavy lengths dragging against each other. No words were spoken, just harsh panting breaths and deep grunts of pure pleasure. Cas wanted to keep his eyes open, wanted to watch Dean’s moss green eyes glaze over in rapture, but he couldn’t. The feelings coursing him through him were just too intense. His mouth fell open on a silent cry and the coiled tension snapped. Castiel arched his back, euphoric, as he found his release. He could feel his come spurting out in thick pulses, as he continued to grind against Dean. Another burst of come shot out of him as he felt Dean lock up against him, finding his own bliss and groaning against the side of Cas’ neck.

For a long time they laid like that, Cas’ legs around Dean, Dean’s face buried against Cas’ neck as their bodies continued to quake. Castiel’s mouth was dry and his breath was ragged. Dean was making little humming noises that vibrated Cas’ skin to the point where it almost tickled, but he was too blissed out to move.

“Holy shit, Cas,” Dean slurred, trying and failing to lift up his head.

“Quite,” he replied roughly.

“And that wasn’t even regular sex. What the fuck is gonna happened when I come inside you?” Dean’s voice was a sleepy murmur now.

Cas turned until his lips brushed against Dean’s forehead. He used his grace to clean them of the wet stickiness in both of their pants.

“I don’t know,” Castiel said, as his eyes began to drift close. “But I can’t wait to find out.”


	10. Chapter 10

Dean leaned against Castiel’s kitchen counter, grasping a bright yellow mug full of coffee. He took a sip and let the warmth seep in. _Coffee always tasted better after sleeping in and intense frottage,_ he thought to himself with a smile. Dean peered through the kitchen window out into the backyard. Castiel kept the lawn neat, with a playhouse and swingset just for Ollie. He also had a small herb garden, though Dean didn't really know why. It’s not like Castiel cooked. Though he could dial the number to _China Garden_ faster than anyone he knew.

Dean was actually surprised that Castiel was still asleep. He usually only needed a few z’s and he was raring to go. Dean had left the angel asleep in bed and gone to shower. When he came out to rummage through Cas’ drawers for some clothes, Cas was still snoozing away. He could have put his clothes from yesterday back on, but they held the unpleasant day after smell of beer and fried food. Dean had found no less than four of his own tee-shirts in Cas’ bottom drawer. How he had not noticed they were gone, Dean would never know. He’d chosen an old blue _Metallica_ tee-shirt he thought was long gone and navy sweats.

Dean finished his first cup of coffee standing up then went in for another. Dean felt like he was in a dream. He couldn’t believe that he finally, _finally_ had what he’d wanted for so long. Castiel loved him and they were bonded and they would be together for the rest of their lives. Just the thought brought a goofy smile to his face, but he didn’t even care. He didn’t care if he got a flat tire, he didn’t care if work sucked tomorrow, he didn’t care if, _God forgive him for even thinking it,_ someone stole Baby. Because he had Cas now and that was everything.

Dean whistled as he pulled out a frying pan from the drawer under the stove. Dean bounced over to the pantry and pulled a tupperware bowl from the bottom shelf. He grabbed eggs, cheese, ham, and milk from the fridge and some frozen chopped onion and peppers from the freezer. By the time the first omelet was done, Castiel had stumbled into the kitchen. Dean smiled so widely his face hurt. Cas had on his sleep pants and Dean’s fried-food scented shirt from yesterday. His dark hair was standing up in every direction and he had sleep lines down his cheek.  He rubbed at his eyes with his fist and blinked owlishly at the sun streaming in through the window. Dean wordlessly handed him a cup of coffee. Cas merely grunted in response before taking a large sip. He placed the cup on the edge of the counter before coming to stand in front of Dean. He rested his head against Dean’s chest and muttered into his shirt.

“What do I smell like to you?” came the muffled question.

Dean ran a hand through Cas’ messy bed head and chuckled. “What do you smell like?”

“Yes,” Cas said, pulling back to look up at Dean with wide blue eyes. “You smell like leather and sandalwood and something a bit spicy. I just wondered if-”

“Rain,” Dean interrupted, “You smell like spring rain, and citrus and earth. Like when you step outside after a downpour in an orange grove and the trees and grass are soaked. Like, I don’t know, fresh.”

Cas smiled at him, ruefully. “You make me sound like laundry detergent.”

“Shaddup, I like laundry detergent. Smells like home,” Dean could feel himself blushing but the joyful expression Cas’ face was worth it. “Sit down, I made omelets,”

Castiel settled down at the kitchen table, hooking his feet over the rungs of his blonde wooden stool. Dean felt a flutter of happiness as he easily flipped the omelet onto grass green ceramic plates. Dean was at home in Castiel’s place, had been from the very first time had come here. But Dean had gotten used to pushing that vision of he and Cas sharing breakfast after lazy mornings sleeping in, of sharing a bed, aside. Now that he didn't have to anymore, the joy he felt bubbled inside of him and made him laugh out loud.

Castiel didn’t ask and Dean didn’t know if it was because he could feel his jubilance or if it was just that Cas knew Dean so well. Dean slid Cas’ plate over to him along with a fork before sitting down across from him at the small kitchen table.

“Mmm,” Castiel moaned over a mouthful of egg and cheese and Dean smiled.

“Good?”

Cas just nodded as his mouth was too full and Dean laughed.

“When did you want to talk to Gabriel? I only ask because I have Sam waiting at home, and Charlie coming over. Maybe Benny.”

Dean felt a twinge of jealousy that definitely didn’t come from and he quirked a brow at his angel.

“You got a problem with Benny, Cas?”

“I am sure I don’t know what you are talking about,” Castiel said, primly patting his mouth with a napkin.

“Uh-huh,” Dean said, “well, we gotta decide what to do about work.”

Castiel took a sip of his coffee and inclined his head in silent question.

“You know how the department isn’t a fan of couples working together. Who knows what they’ll say about a bonded pair. We’re gonna have to go to Bobby with this.”

“I can only imagine it would be beneficial. We’ll be able to communicate better, without even speaking.”

“Yes, but Bobby might argue back that we’ll be more distracted too, especially if we can feel everything each other is feeling. He might be afraid that we’ll be worried about each other too much,” Dean said, forking up some of his omelet.

Cas shook his head. “I disagree. With or without the bond, we worry about each other’s safety. And it wouldn't be like that anyway. Right now, everything is open, but I think it will taper off. We should only be feeling each other during highly emotional circumstances. This is why we need to talk to Gabriel,”

Dean got up to refill both of their coffees. “We have to go down to the courthouse too. We have to register as a bonded pair.” All angel human bonds mates were required to register once they had bonded. That way if something tragic ever happened to one, the police would have it on file and would know they needed to get to the other bondmate and make sure they lived their final moments somewhere safe and comfortable.  

Dean sat back down and their legs tangled under the table. “What time do you have to meet Balthazar?” he tried to keep his tone casual and his emotions steady. Dean didn’t want to add anymore guilt to what Cas had been feeling yesterday. He watched as Castiel fiddled with a napkin he pulled from it’s holder.

Castiel sighed,”I am supposed to meet him at 5pm for an early dinner then we were supposed to go see a movie. I wouldn’t go but…” Cas’ voice trailed off and his emotive blue eyes implored Dean to understand.

Dean reached out and pulled the shredded napkin from Castiel’s fingers, brushing the little bits stuck on the pads of Cas’ thumbs. It was quiet except for the sound of their breathing and the steady hum of the refrigerator. Dean didn’t need to say anything. He stroked Cas’ palms gently. This whole situation was so new, but at the same time not. It felt right, comfortable like this what was the way it always should have been. It was like nothing had changed, except now they were lovers.

Castiel cleared his throat. “Dean, I want you to know that there may be times when I pull back. It won’t be intentional, and I do not regret for one second that we are sitting here together right now. Last night, this morning, I can’t even tell you...the happiness… I have never felt this kind of bliss in my entire existence,” Cas’ eyes were locked on Dean’s and Dean could feel a blush stain his cheeks.”But I fought against us for so long. For so long I thought I was doing the right thing, that us being together when there are so many elements that could take us from this world, that doubling those odds would be selfish-”

“It’s okay, Cas, I get it.”

“No, Dean, I am telling you, if I ever get like that, if I push you away or I try to sabotage us, don’t let me, okay?” Cas’ voice was strained and Dean sought to ease his mind.

“Castiel, I promise you that I will not let you push me away. I will give you space when you need it, but I am always gonna be here. And the fact is, we are already bonded, or nearly completely anyway. The damage is already done, though I personally think it’s a blessing,” he said with a soft smile. “Even if in a fit of anger or fear, you want to back out, it doesn’t matter. Eventually you’ll accept it.”

“Dean, I do accept-”

Dean stopped Cas’ protest with a fingers to his pink lips.

“You do, separately. Your heart accepts and your head accepts it. But eventually your heart and head will each accept it at the same time without waging a war inside of you. Until then, I can be patient. I waited this long, didn’t I?” Dean said it to tease but Castiel bit his lip and stared at him somberly.

“You almost gave up.” It wasn’t a question and Dean nodded in acquiescence.

“I did. But I thought you didn’t feel like I did. I thought if I gave you up, you would be happy. Making you happy is all I want. But you _do_ feel the same, so that isn’t an issue. You can fight with me, scream at me, tell me to leave. You can rail and say we are selfish and being together is dangerous and it won’t matter, because I know the truth. We were meant to be. And whether you like it or not, it doesn’t matter. Our fates are sealed.”

“You jump, I jump, huh?” Castiel said with a lopsided smile and Dean snorted.

“Dude, you did not just _Titanic_ me.”

Castiel broke into a wide smile. “I loved that movie.”

“That movie was depressing as fuck Cas. Now, _Die Hard_. That’s a good movie,” Dean said, pleased when Castiel rolled his eyes and the heaviness of their conversation was lifted.  He stood up, taking their plates to the sink to rinse and put in the dishwasher. He squirted some dish liquid on the now cooled off teflon pan and gently rubbed it clean with yellow sponge from the dish on the windowsill. “Why don't you go get dressed and give Gabe a call. Let's get that out of the way as soon as possible. I don’t want to talk to Bobby or make an appointment at the registry until we find out where we are at.”

Castiel snuck up behind him and hugged Dean from behind and Dean settled back into the embrace, warm water still running over his hands holding the pan. Cas pressed a soft kiss to the back of his neck.

“Okay. Later, after I talk with Balthazar, I will come over, if that is agreeable?”

“Of course it’s agreeable. Charlie is gonna freak out you know. I am debating on whether or not to tell her right away or wait till you come over,” Dean shut off the water and grabbed a dishtowel off of the counter to dry his hands before turning his body so he was facing Cas. “If I tell her right way, she’ll be so distracted by wanting to ask questions, I’ll kick her ass in any game we play.”

“That is called cheating, Dean,” Cas furrowed his brow, tone reproachful. Dean just laughed and pressed a kiss to his temple.

“Go get ready, I wanna get this out of the way as soon as possible.”

 _“Vorsg_ ,” Castiel muttered petulantly as he headed back towards the bedroom.

“Yeah, get used to it,” Dean fired back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> vorsg: Bossy


	11. Chapter 11

Castiel felt antsy as he waited for Gabriel to show up. He wasn't sure if some of Dean’s anticipation of getting this talk over with was bleeding into his own emotions. That was going to take some getting used to. Dealing with his own thoughts and feelings compounded by the onslaught of Dean’s. He knew his partner wasn't too thrilled about it either, at least about the part where Dean seemed more readable than himself. He knew they would both enjoy it, once the overflow calmed down. Being able to feel each other while being intimate, that feedback loop of sensation, he’d had a taste of that now and did not want to let that go. Being able to converse without speaking, it would be worth it. They would learn to control the excess. Castiel just hoped if it took awhile that Dean wouldn’t become too frustrated. His love was a private person when it came to emotions. Deflection and humor were Dean's body armor. To have that stripped away had to be a little disconcerting, no matter how happy Dean was about their relationship status change.

Castiel found himself impatiently strumming his fingers on the kitchen table. His other hand came to tug up at his crooked tie. He shifted in his seat, causing the chair to creak.

“Dude,” Dean said and huffed out a laugh. He was perched on the kitchen counter, another cup of coffee cupped in his hands. “You gotta settle. I can practically hear your feathers ruffling,” Dean cocked a brow at him.”You nervous?”

That was a good question. Was he nervous? Cas pondered for a moment before answering. “Not nervous, just a little anxious. I want to know why I can feel you so intensely. I do believe it has to do with angels being more prone to stoicism. Of keeping an emotional distance. I want to know how you can understand me when I speak Enochian. I want to know why all of this happened when we hadn’t and technically haven't, consummated our relationship fully,” Castiel sighed, running a hand through his hair. “I just have a lot of questions.”

Dean slid off the countertop and settled himself behind Castiel’s chair. His strong fingers brushed against Cas’ shoulders and he began to knead. Cas gave a low groan of approval as Dean effortlessly worked out the knots, slowly, methodically moving from one tense spot to the next, relieving the kinks with deft presses of thumbs and fingertips. Castiel's breath hitched as Dean unknowingly brushed a particularly sensitive wing joint. Now that was something Cas was definitely looking forward too. The intimacy of having a mate groom his wings.

Dean bent his head down to brush his lips against the nape of Cas’ neck, as he continued to rub his muscles. He felt Dean breathing against his skin, inhaling deeply. “Damn, you smell good. I swear, it just got stronger. I feel like I could drink you,” Dean laughed as he said the words, as though he couldn't believe they were coming out of his mouth. Castiel flushed at the compliments.

“It's my wing oil. When I feel pleasure, they, _ahem_ , they secrete a little,” Castiel didn't know why he felt embarrassed by the admission, but he did.

Dean paused in his movements for a moment. “So, it’s like precome, but for your wings?”

Castiel gave a shocked gasp of laughter at Dean’s teasing question. “I suppose so.”

“Is it edible? Like, if it’s trickling down your sides and I am sucking one of your _perfect_ hip bones,” Dean’s hands trailed down to grip at said hip bones through the soft cotton of his slacks, “can I lick it, or is it not safe?”

Castiel didn't know why he was surprised that Dean was so frank in his questions. Sex and things of a physical nature had never been something that Dean shied away from talking about, though in the past year he had refrained from speaking about that kind of stuff to him. Mainly because of their, not to be dramatic, but star-crossed lovers situation.

“It’s perfectly safe for you to ingest, particularly as my mate. Wing oil is often used as lubricant during sexual activity, as well as for grooming of the wings.”

“Well, if tastes as good as it smells, I am probably going to become an addict. Just a heads up," Dean said with a smile in his voice from behind him. Castiel relaxed back against Dean’s form, noticing that all the tension had left his body.

“You are very good at that,” Castiel said.

“What, massages?”

Cas shook his head. “No, distracting me when I am tense,” Castiel felt a brush of lips on the top of his head.

“Good.”

The obnoxiously loud growl of an engine cut off anymore conversation.

Dean rushed into the livingroom to peer out the living room window. “What in the hell...when the fuck did your brother pick up a fucking Streetfighter?”

Cas cocked his head in confusion. “He brought an aggressive youth proficient in fisticuffs?”

The ‘what the fuck’ expression on Dean’s face told him he was way off.

“What? Where..okay, no more _Mortal Kombat_ for you sweetheart. It’s a motorcycle Cas, Jesus Christ.”

The amused affection in Dean’s voice went a long way to soothe the blasphemy. Cas joined Dean at the window and watched as his brother attempted to climb off of a behemoth of a bike. Beside him, Dean snickered.

“Look at how his little legs dangle, Cas,” Dean was full on laughing at that point as Gabriel carefully slid off the orange monstrosity. Castiel could see the shades twitch in his neighbor across the street’s house. Mrs. Rosenbaum was very sweet, but very inquisitive. Dean said that was just Cas’ nice way of saying nosy.

Dean jumped next to him as someone tapped his shoulder. It took Cas a second to realize that he was now staring at a angel free driveway.

“Seriously, Gabe? The door is RIGHT there,” Dean complained.

“Where’s the fun in that, Dean-o?” Gabriel asked, with a pop of gum. “So where’s the fire? Cas said you had some important things to ask me about…” Gabriel trailed off, his golden eyes flickering over the room and then back at Castiel and Dean where they still stood in front of the window. His shrewd eyes narrowed. And then he sniffed. Gabriel edged closer to Dean, inhaling again and Dean stepped back.

“The fuck, dude?”

Gabriel turned his eyes on Castiel and he swallowed harshly as a slow smile started to creep across his brother’s face.

“Oh, Cassie. You have some splainin’ to do.”

Castiel merely sighed at his brother’s teasing tone.

“Don’t sigh at me, brother. I can smell you all over each other. How long have you and Dean-o been mated?”

Castiel walked over to his sofa and sank down on the soft burgundy cushion. “I don’t know.”

Gabriel’s brows winged up in confusion. “You don’t know? How do you not know?” Gabe turned to Dean, “If he doesn’t know, then you obviously didn’t do your job correctly.”

“Gabriel!” Castiel barked, dragging his brother’s attention back to himself before Dean broke his hand by trying to punch the archangel in the face. “Could you just turn off the theatrics for a second. I called you for a reason, and it wasn’t to irritate Dean.”

Gabriel’s lower lip jutted out in a pout, but he came over to sit on the arm chair across from the couch. Castiel reached his hand out towards Dean who came forward and clasped it as he settled down next to Cas.

“Alright broseph, what’s the deal?”

“Dean and I have appeared to have bonded without consummating. I am not sure when it happened, and neither is he,” Cas looked to Dean for confirmation and he nodded in agreement.

“Wait, how long have you two been a couple?”

“We weren’t,” Dean answered. “I mean, I wanted to be. I, um,” Dean rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly and Castiel squeezed his hand in reassurance. " I’ve had feelings for Cas for a long time, and a while back we had a rough case, and things were kind of, emotional I guess, and all of a sudden I could see Cas’ wings.”

Gabriel whistled “I bet that was surprising,” he said and Dean snorted inelegantly.

“Understatement. I had read what that meant. The department, we’re made to read up on these things, especially when working with angels, or dealing with cases that have to do with mated pairs. So I knew what it meant. But Cas…” Dean trailed off, side-eying Cas, so he picked it up from there.

“But I decided that it shouldn’t go any further than that.”

Gabriel winced. “Ouch, Cassie. Nice of you to include Dean in that decision.”

Castiel glared. “I thought I was doing the right thing. I was afraid. I didn't want Mary and Sam to suffer. If something were to happen to me, then it would happen to Dean too. They’ve lost enough,” Castiel could feel himself getting worked up and defensive and Dean brought his hand to Cas’ back and rubbed in soothing circles.

“Okay, so what changed?”

Castiel shook his head. “I’m unsure. I had decided that I was done playing the martyr. The past few days had been rough for us, and it was becoming clear that what I was doing was wrong. I was trying to save heartache, but instead I was causing it. I was going to tell Dean that I changed my mind, and that I wanted to give us a chance,” Castiel slid his eyes to Dean’s and smiled softly. Dean smiled beck before taking over the tale.

“Sammy’s home,” Dean’s eyes narrowed menacingly as Gabriel’s face lit up at the news,”and we were at _The Roadhouse._ Kid invited Cas to dinner. We were sitting at the table and Sammy was quizzing Cas about a date he’d set up and I reacted kind of strong. Internally.”

“And I could feel it,” Castiel cut in, “so intensely, as though it were me. I didn’t realize it before then, but I had been doing so for awhile. I think I just didn’t recognize it, because we’ve both been so miserable.”

“Can you feel him too, Dean?” Gabriel asked and Castiel was grateful that for once he wasn’t being a childish.

“Sometimes? Definitely not as easily as he can feel me, which is kind of annoying. But I can understand Enochian now, which was pretty fucking surprising.”

“Ha, you’re a parselmouth!” Gabe chortled and Dean clapped his hands.

“That’s what I said!”

Castiel rolled his eyes. “Yes, now that we’ve established you both watch too much Harry Potter, can you tell us what this means, Gabriel? Dean and I, we haven’t...well, that is to say, there has been no insertion-”

“We’ve made each other come, but we haven’t had sex, and this all happened before that anyway,” Dean frankly.

“Yes, that. What he just said,” Cas said, stiltedly.

Dean ran a gentle finger across Cas’ stubble. “My little prudish angel,” he teased.

When Castiel dragged his gaze away from Dean’s it was to find Gabriel watching them, thoughtfully.

“Well, I can say that what has happened is rare, but not completely unheard of. With most pairings, they fall in love, consummate said love, then bam, bond is born. But in your case, I would guess that the reason you’re nearly bonded already is because you’re true mates. You don’t need the sex to get all the benefits of the bond, it was going to happen anyway,” Gabriel leaned back further into the chair, and pulled a red tootsie pop out of his pocket.

“But aren’t all bonded pairs true mates?” Dean asked.

“And what do you mean, nearly?” Castiel followed up.

Gabriel pulled the pop out of his mouth with a slurp that had Dean rolling his eyes. “Okay, so the romantic version of soulmates is that there is one for everybody, when in reality, most people have multiple soulmates scattered throughout the world. If everyone only had one, the chances of them ever meeting, well...that would be nearly impossible. But, that being said, there are a very few rare pairs that do indeed only have one soulmate. Those are your true mates,” Gabriel said with a flourish of hands towards Dean and Castiel. “As for the nearly. Right now, Dean, Cas here can read you like a book. Angels, we’re used to keeping our emotions in check, though the longer we’re on earth, the more free with them we become. You humans, your emotions run hot. So right now, with the bond newly activated, Cas is feeling anything that you are having a hard time controlling. You can feel his, but for now, that will just come in flashes. Once you’ve taken that final step, it will even out.”

“You mean intercourse?” Castiel asked, just to be sure.

“No, I mean the _Macarena_ . Yes, intercourse,” Gabriel turned to Dean. “ _Aschaniis ol oiad tahila_ ,”

Dean laughed a little in disbelief, “Yeah, thanks.”

Castiel was once again taken aback at Dean’s newfound powers of translation, yet grateful for Gabriel’s _Welcome to the family_ in Enochian.

“The Enochian thing? That’s a true mates only deal. Not just any bonded pair can do that,” Gabriel said, as he stuck the pop back in his mouth.

“Not to be a Debbie downer or anything, but what exactly does this mean for the whole death thing. If I were to get hit by a bus tonight-”

“That’s not funny, Dean,” Castiel’s heart lurched at the thought.

“Not being funny, sweetheart, just trying to understand,” Dean said, laying a hand on Cas’ thigh. He covered it with his own as Dean continued his questioning. “If something happened to me, would Cas be okay?”

“For now, yes. It’s a whole, mystical, your body within his body experience,” Gabriel said, waving his hands dramatically. “For the the bond to be completely, well, complete, yes, you must get your groove on. Until then, either one of you could croak and the other would still live. But just barely, and you’d need immediate medical attention. Why, are you planning on holding off?”

“No,” Castiel said vehemently, when he felt Dean’s eyes on him. “No, we shall bond properly. It’s not fair the way it is right now. Dean doesn’t really have privacy in his own head with everything as uneven as it is.”

“Do you think Cas and I will be able to do that talking to each other with our minds thing?” Dean asked and Castiel was grateful that he remembered the question. “Since he can pretty much read all my emotions right now, once that’s the way it should be, equal and all, will we be able to communicate?”

Gabriel crunched the last of his lollipop, and vanished the stick with a flick of his wrist. He held up a finger as he finished chewing and Castiel resisted the urge to roll his eyes.

“Yes. But it won’t be like _oh sugarpuss, can you grab milk on the way home?_ It’s like the feeling each other’s emotions thing, it will only work when things are running on hot. Extreme situations, danger, intimacy, anger, joy,” he ticked them off on his fingers,”and unlike the feelings, which will just come across naturally, the words...those you’ll have to push. Say one of you for whatever reason is stranded somewhere, no cell phone, whatever, you’re fucking lost. You’d have to really concentrate when sending a message. Like you’re praying to each other.”

Castiel nodded thoughtfully. That made sense. When Cas first came to earth, he could hear random prayers, but the longer he stayed, and especially when he decided to become earth bound, that went away. He could pray to another angel and another angel could pray to him, but human prayers faded and eventually stopped altogether. But being so closely tied to one human? Having that person essentially be a part of him? It made sense that they would be connected like that.

Castiel felt Dean’s gaze on him and he turned so that blue met green in an intense locked look. He’d found his true mate in his very best friend. Things were no doubt about to get interesting.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aschaniis ol oiad tahila: welcome to the family


	12. Chapter 12

Castiel dropped Dean off at the apartment with a lingering kiss, fingertips clenched so tightly on Dean’s hips that there was no doubt there would be marks bruised into the skin. Though Castiel promised to come over as soon as the meeting with Balthazar- _Dean refused to call it a date-_ was done, Dean was still left with this vague feeling of melancholy that he knew was irrational.

Gabriel had stayed for a while, answering questions. By the time he was ready to leave  Dean was a little fuzzy headed. He’d felt a little outside of his body and Castiel had been looking at him with growing concern. Dean had reassured his partner that he was fine. Ecstatic, in fact. It was all just a lot to take in. It was also a little disconcerting knowing that until they fully completed the bond, Dean was pretty much a walking diary for Castiel to read.

Planning a night to do the deed, too, just seemed so unromantic and clinical for his taste, but at the same time, despite Castiel’s assurances, Dean was worried that if they didn’t bond right away, the angel would come up with some reason to put it off. No.They needed to nail down the night-or day- that they could just devote to themselves. If Dean didn’t already have Sam and Charlie and Benny at the apartment for game night that evening, Dean would still be at Castiel’s, camped out in his bedroom, waiting for the angel to get back home.

Dean felt bad for the other detective, but not enough to step down. Besides, Balthazar was an angel too. If anyone could understand the importance of a true mate mating bond, it was him. Or so that is what Castiel said as he nipped at Dean’s bottom lip once last time before he slid out of the car. Dean saluted Cas goodbye, not heading towards his building til the atrocity Cas called a vehicle was out of sight. He nodded up at Frank camped out on his balcony. He had earbuds in and was clacking away at his laptop and barely spared Dean a glance.

Since the Impala wasn’t in the complex parking lot, that meant Sam was out. Probably went to buy some eco friendly toilet paper or some shit since he was staying for the long haul now. Dean could give a fuck so long as he remembered the wings.

Dean let himself into the apartment and sighed. It was quiet and Dean could already see that Sam had started making himself at home. A few new DVD’s adorned the shelf, some documentaries and _Jesus fucking  Christ,_ advanced yoga. Good lord, how the hell did Sam turn out so earthy crunchy?

Dean wondered if he should call his mom. Mary was extremely fond of Castiel, but he didn’t know how she would take the news of him being eternally bound to the angel. The fact was, Dean was a much bigger danger to Castiel than Castiel was to him.

Dean went to his fridge to grab a beer. He’d have to text Sam to pick up a twelve pack, he only had two Budweisers left. He popped the top and took a swig, feeling restless. He wished he wasn’t such a neat freak. Having something to clean, some dishes to wash, anything to keep busy so he wasn’t envisioning Castiel sitting at some candlelit table with Balthazar-

Dean’s train of thought derailed when his phone buzzed in his pocket. He fished it out and swiped the pad.

_From Cas: Breathe_

He hadn’t even been aware that he was holding his breath until he read the message. It came out on a _whoosh_ of sound. Dean let loose a little hysterical laugh. He needed to get ahold of himself. He couldn’t have Castiel worried about him for no reason. Dean was acting like a 15 year old girl worried that her boyfriend wanted to drop her for the head cheerleader. He glanced at the clock on the cable box and saw that it was 3:34. Still over two hours before Charlie and Benny would be showing up.

Dean didn’t bother responding back to Cas, he figured that his partner would realize that he was okay now that he was inhaling and exhaling. Instead, he sent Sam a message asking him to stop at the liquor store. Dean went to his pantry and pulled out a box of store brand brownie mix and half a bag of toll house. Double chocolate brownies were Charlie’s favorite and the soothing task of baking would waste some time while he waited for Sam to get back. As Dean pulled the mixing bowl from the cabinet above the counter he debated again about whether he was going to say anything to Charlie and Benny about him and Cas. Part of him wanted to shout it from the rooftops. But the more practical part of him knew it was better to wait until Castiel came over. Not that he thought that Castiel was going to take one look at Balthazar and change his mind- _haha_ -but because he knew Charlie. There would be a lot of of questions and it would be a lot easier to answer them with Castiel present.

Dean mixed all of the ingredients and had just poured them into a greased pan when he heard the key turn in the lock.

“Better not be a scratch on her,” Dean called out as he placed the pan on the middle oven rack.

“Yeah, yeah. Hey, your crazy neighbor-”

“Ah,ah, ahh,” Dean interrupted, “now he’s you’re crazy neighbor, too.”

Sam rolled his hazel eyes. “Whatever, _our_ crazy neighbor told me to let you know that more boxes came in and that the delivery guy kept looking at our building.”

Dean snorted at that. More like the delivery guy was wondering who the crazy guy with the laptop and binoculars was who was staring him down.

“Noted.”

Sam set the case of _Bud_ and a large brown paper bag and the smell of spicy buffalo wings engulfed the kitchen. They set your mouth on fire but they were the tastiest mother fuckers Dean had ever had.

“So,” Sam began as he started putting bottles in the back of the refrigerator. “How’d everything go?” Dean could tell Sam was trying to sound casual, but Dean knew he was dying of curiosity.

“It went well,” Dean teased over his shoulder as he headed to the bedroom to change out of the sweats and into a pair of jeans. When he came back out Sam was giving him his patented bitch face.

“That’s all you got for me? It went well?” Sam’s tone was petulant and Dean laughed, picking up the beer he’d left on the counter and taking a healthy swallow.

“Yeah. Look, I kind of want to wait for Cas before answering a whole boat load of questions, but I will tell you one thing we learned from Gabriel. Cas and I are true mates.”

Sam’s face lit up with excitement which was all Dean needed to tell him that his geek of a brother already knew what that meant.

“Dean! Do you have any idea how rare that is?”

“Yep,” Dean answered, face buried in the fridge as he pulled out their last already cold beer.

“And what are the chances that you and Castiel would have actually found each other?” Sam’s wonder filled voice couldn't help but pull a smile from Dean. “Dude, have you talked to Mom?”

“Um, since last night? That would be a no. We just found out, Sammy. Let me and Cas live with it a little bit. We’ll tell her at the next family dinner.”

Sam nodded. “Good idea. Then Cas can do his jedi mind trick if she starts freaking out, calm her down.”

“My-” Dean cocked his head. What did he call Cas now? Lover? Boyfriend? Partner? Would that get confusing? Work partner verses life partner?  “My boyfriend is not human xanax...but yeah, Good plan.”

“So, do you feel different?” Sam asked him, arms folded across his chest.

Dean sank into the overstuffed easy chair ”Not really. I feel pretty much like I always do. Except not depressed,” he huffed a laugh.  “I’m nervous. I’m afraid I’m gonna wake up and this will all have been a dream, but other than that, I feel exactly the same,” Dean absently rubbed the back of his neck. “I don’t know, man. I’ve loved him for a long time.”  

“You never said anything.”

Dean rolled his eyes.”And that surprises you?’

“A little.”

“Sam, name one time we ever stayed up eating cookie dough, while giving each other manicures and talking about our feelings?”

Sam snorted.”You know this is different. We’re not talking about a crush here, Dean.”

“I’d really rather not talk it to death. Believe me. I get it. This is a for life deal. And yes, I am scared of what could happen if either of us gets hurt. But I am not scared of us being together, because I know that it’s what’s right. And if we had gotten together back when I first wanted to, then I probably would have called you. But when he rejected me…” Dean sighed. “It just hurt too much to talk about and he needed time to wise up.”

After that Dean changed the subject, and they spoke of inconsequential things. Dean took the brownies out of the oven, then threw a quick taco dip together as Sam whipped up a batch of his famous Long Island Iced Tea. He made it in a huge jug, in one of those old school coolers with the spigot on the bottom that you would fill with lemonade and take to the beach. By the time Benny and Charlie showed up it was quarter to six. Dean pointed Benny and his six pack of Crimson Irish Ale- _a dark ale with a base of sheep's blood_ \- towards the fridge.

“Now don’t go stealing one of these, brother,” Benny teased with a wink and Dean cringed.

“Yeah, no worries, buddy.”

Dean really liked Benny. He was real down to earth, great at his job and didn’t let his condition hinder him at all. He also had a little crush on Dean, that the detective tried very hard to ignore. He hoped that when Benny realized that Dean was taken, it wouldn’t bruise the Cajun’s ego too much.

They eased into game night with some old school Mario Kart. Dean forced himself to put Castiel and Balthazar out of his head and concentrated on not falling off of rainbow road. For the millionth time.

* * *

 

Castiel felt an immediate wave of sadness after he dropped Dean off at his apartment. He knew some of it was runoff from Dean’s emotions, but mostly it was himself. After fighting the inevitable for so long, finally giving in was euphoric. Every part of him ached to be with Dean.

Castiel headed back to his house to get ready for his dinner with Balthazar. A movie was obviously out at this point. He also needed to pack an overnight  bag because once he got to Dean’s house, he didn’t plan on leaving his apartment or bed, unless absolutely necessary.

After changing out of his t-shirt for something a bit more formal, Castiel threw some sweats and tees in a old Mets duffle bag. He didn’t even know where it had come from. He also tossed in his toothbrush. He was surprised to find himself short of breath. He bent over the sink, trying to breathe through his nose, at a loss from where the panic was coming from. It took him a minute to realize. _Dean._ Dean was freaking out about Castiel’s “date.” Castiel sent calm, loving thoughts through the bond and quickly shot out a text reminding Dean to breathe for good measure. Almost immediately, the pressure eased up.

On the way to the restaurant, Castiel felt a little edgy. He wasn’t really worried about what Balthazar would say. It was more of an overall anxiousness. Now that he had given in, he was just ready to begin this new journey with his beloved. He didn’t want to be driving to a restaurant to put a halt to a doomed relationship. He wanted to be at Dean’s apartment, with his creepy neighbor and broken-in couch. He wanted to capture those deliciously pink lips in a searing kiss while Sam rolled his eyes in annoyance from across the room. He wanted to drive into work together and banter on long stakeouts and give that homophobic neanderthal Walker something to bitch about. He wanted it all, the mundane and the extraordinary.

Castiel couldn’t hold back the chuckle as he pulled his old Continental into the parking lot of _Le Soleil Bistro_ . His beat up car was wildly out of place between a Beamer and a Lexus. He could just _see_ Dean shaking his head. Once inside he checked his trench coat at the door and was told his companion- _Roche, party of two_ \- had already arrived and was enjoying a glass of wine alfresco. It smelled delicious inside of the establishment, especially the freshly baked bread. Castiel thought that he would definitely have to peruse the dessert menu while he was there to see if there was something delectable that he could take home to Dean.

Castiel was led past the bar and through a dining area filled with chatter and art prints of sidewalk chalk drawings. He was led out through french doors to a terrace patio. The theme was a chic Paris cafe with little table tops for two complete with parasol style umbrellas. Perfect for a warm spring evening. His eyes found Balthazar’s easily enough. The blonde angel wore a navy v-neck with a pair of what Castiel would guess were designer jeans, and a beige sports jacket.

Balthazar rose to meet him as Castiel came to the table. Castiel’s hands were clasped warmly and he couldn’t help but smile at the man before him.

“Hello, Castiel. Looking ravishing as always.”

Castiel found himself glancing down at his attire. He didn’t see what was so ravishing about it. It was just his standard, pants, shirt and tie combo. Dean liked to call it his holy tax accountant look. But he thanked Balthazar for the compliment regardless.

“I’m so glad you came. I must confess, I thought perhaps you’d cancel.”

Here was the opening he was looking for and Castiel gave a small, rueful smile as they sat down. He waited until the server poured them a glass of white before speaking, sighing and resting his chin on his fist.

“I’m sorry,” he said regretfully, when the server left.

“Sorry for what?” Balthazar asked, taking a sip of his wine.

Castiel raised his head. “For not canceling. I should have. I actually never should have agreed to come out with you in the first place. No, wait let me-”Castiel held up his hand to stop the flow of questions. “It’s not you. You’re wonderful, truly. You’re a great person, a commendable detective. But the truth is, I said yes in an attempt to let go of someone else.”

“Huh.” It came out on a huff. “And did you? Let go of them, I mean?” His voice wasn’t unkind and Castiel felt some of the tension leave his body.

“Not as such.”

“Well, is it serious? Do I even have a shot somewhere down the line?” Balthazar’s hopeful voice betrayed his neutral,expression.

“He is my mate. Or soon to be, I should say. We’ve already bonded, even without…”

Balthazar’s breath hitched in awe. “A true mate? How fortuitous! That is so rare, Castiel. I have to ask, then why were you putting it off-oh, wait. Is it Dean? Please, tell me it’s Dean. If I’m going to lose out on you, soothe my ego and tell me it’s to that fine partner of yours.”

Castiel felt his face break out in a wide smile that he had no hope to contain. Balthazar signaled to a nearby server for a top off of his glass and leaned back in his seat.

“Alright, Cassie. This is not the date I was expecting. But that's okay. We’re going to enjoy a fabulous meal, drink some wine and you are going to regale me with tales of your delicious young man.”

Castiel let out a relieved laugh before leaning forward to grasp Balthazar’s hand. “Thank you,” he said gratefully. “Truly.”

* * *

 

The ride back to Dean’s felt as if in slow motion. If there was a red light to be hit, he hit it. Usually one with endless patience, he found himself eager to be in Dean’s presence. He imagined the little group in full swing. Dean and Charlie would be battling it out in front of the tv while Sam and Benny were most likely playing cribbage for five bucks a hand.

It was only 8:30. Castiel and Balthazar had had an enjoyable evening, discussing the rarity of true mates and how the fact that Dean could understand Enochian could be a neat little scare tactic during interviews.

Castiel took the turn into Dean’s complex, finding an open guest spot in the back. He could see Charlie’s Beetle and Benny’s Dodge up near the front. Before he locked the doors to his car, he grabbed his duffel and go bag from the passenger seat. The filet mignon and baby potatoes has been exquisite so when he saw lemon meringue and chocolate silk pie on the dessert menu, Castiel knew he had to bring some home for Dean. In the end he wound up with two pies. He’d had to wait an extra half an hour for the lemon to finish, but had been assured it would be worth it.

Castiel could smell cigar smoke wafting in the air as he walked up to Dean’s building.  He pulled out the spare copy of keys that Dean had given him when they became partners.

“How are you this evening, Mr. Devereaux?” Castiel inquired politely, only to have the man lean over the edge of his balcony, blinking at him from behind night vision goggles.

“Hey, Detective with wings. They got more boxes today,” Frank said, nodding over at the neighboring building. “Three different shipments,” he lowered his voice on the last part.

“I will be sure to add it to my notes,” Castiel responded in an equally grave tone. “Thank you for your diligence,” Castiel held back an amused smile as Frank saluted him.

Castiel felt Dean before he actually saw him. _Excitement, relief, euphoria_ and as always, _deep abiding love._ Castiel turned the corner to find that Dean had left his apartment and was coming down the hall towards him in long, bow legged strides.

Strong hands cupped Cas’ face as moss green eyes flecked with gold locked on his. Dean gently pushed him against the wall.

“Heya, Cas,” Dean said softly.

“Hello, Dean,” came Castiel’s eager reply before pink, plush lips captured his own.


	13. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> [](http://imgur.com/vMCD4u1)   
> 

Dean wasn't sure how long they stood in the hallway plundering each other's mouths. He really didn't care. Not when his hands were fisted in Castiel's silken hair, and Cas' hands were gripping the back of his tee-shirt as though he were afraid to let go.

Their tongues danced, alternating between long slides and short flicks. Castiel whimpered and Dean greedily swallowed the breathy sound. Dean tilted his head to deepen the kiss, the slick sound of a bottom lip being sucked, deep moans of satisfaction echoing in the quiet hall. Kissing Cas was like nothing he'd ever felt before, the amplified pleasure of feeling each other's emotions making them shudder in each others embrace.

In the back of Dean's mind he knew he had to pull away. he knew Charlie and Benny were probably wondering where the fuck he abruptly ran off to, though Sam's teasing smirk told Dean his brother knew _exactly_ why Dean had jumped off of the couch with an impatient "Be right back."

Dean gave Cas one last sucking nip to his bottom lip before pulling away with a groan. Castiel chased the motion and Dean was gratified to see the lust-cloudedlook glazing the deep blue of castiel's eyes.

"Sorry," Dean said sheepishly.

"Don't be," Castiel replied, voice like sandpaper.

Dean chuckled "I, uh, I just wanted to do that now, before we have to behave like proper adults in front of our friends."

Castiel's lip curved up in a half smile as he nodded. "That was probably a good idea."

Dean watched as Cas bent down to pick up his duffel bag and a white plastic bag with a smiling golden sun on the front. He'd been so caught up in Castiel that he never even registered the angel dropping the bags.

"What's in there? Fancy french leftovers?" he teased.

Castiel leaned into his space and whispered darkly into his ear, "Even better. Fancy french pie."

The angel danced out of reach and headed down the hall towards Dean's apartment, and he hurried after him.

They entered the apartment to a chorus of "Hey, Castiel," though no one looked up. Charlie had her eyes trained on the flatscreen where her avatar was involved in a vicious battle against a rogue elf. It appeared that she had moved on to playing _The Battles of Moondoor_ while he was out in the hallway devouring Castiel’s mouth. Sam and Benny were still at the coffee table playing cards.

Dean took the dessert bag from Castiel and winked at him, nodding his head towards the bedroom. Castiel took the hint and went to put his duffel bag in Dean’s room. As much as Dean wanted to dig into the pies with his bare hands, he remained civilized as he opened the bag to pull the delicious smelling boxes out. He placed them on the counter and called out, “Cas brought dessert, guys.”

Castiel reappeared, shucking his trench coat off and hanging it in the closet by the door. Dean couldn’t help but track his movements and forced himself to think about pie and not bending his intended mate over the back of the couch and fucking him senseless. A hitched gasp from Castiel made it clear that at least some of his thoughts had been picked up, and Cas met his gaze with wide, lust filled eyes.

Dean shrugged helplessly as he broke into the boxes. He inhaled the heavenly scent deeply.

“Don’t act like you are trying to choose,” came Cas’ amused voice from behind him. “You know you’re going to have both.”

“Of course I am. But which one first?”

 The small kitchen became crowded as everyone piled in to look at the confections on the counter.

 “Look at that meringue! It’s like little white clouds,” Charlie squealed, then let out an “oomph,” As Sam, ever the gentleman, shoved her aside to get a peek.

 “Yeah, but look at the chocolate shavings on that one,” Sam said.

 Benny put a stack of paper plates on the table while Castiel grabbed the forks.

 “Alright, alright, out of the way, you heathens,” Dean said as he came through brandishing a knife. Dean plated everyone up their preferred slices, saving himself and Cas for last. As the rest of them trekked back onto the living room, intent on choosing a movie, Dean could feel the weight of the angel’s stare. His breath caught as Dean also felt _want, need_ and _love_ bordering on desperate. Dean paused in his slicing when strong arms wrapped around him from behind. Castiel hooked his chin over Dean’s shoulder, nose nuzzling his neck. Dean relaxed back into Cas’ chest, shivering at the feeling of Castiel’s hot breath ghosting across his skin. Dean breathed deeply as the intoxicating scent of citrus, earth and rain overtook his senses.

“What are the chances that the evening will come to a close early?” Cas’ whiskey-soaked voice was a dark caress that made Dean want to storm into the living room and tell everyone,including his brother, to clear out. Dean turned his head to look at Cas, his lips barely scraping the angel’s stubbled cheek.

“Maybe if we make out like horny teenagers during the movie, they’ll take the hint,” Dean joked and Castiel laughed before pulling back to accept a large slice of lemon meringue.

 Dean nearly melted when Castiel’s nose crinkled adorably when he smiled widely at the two generous pieces of pie on his plate.

“I couldn’t choose.”

“Of course not,” Castiel said, laughter in his tone.

Dean followed his angel back into the living room. Sam and Benny book-ended the couch while Charlie sat cross legged on the floor. That left the wide overstuffed chair and the rest of the floor open.

Dean gestured at Cas with his paper plate to take the chair. When Castiel peered up at him from his seat, Dean just winked and sat on the arm of the chair. He forked up a mouthful of chocolate silk and moaned. In fact, Dean was pretty sure his eyes crossed at the sinfully delicious taste.

“Gross, Dean. Keep your pornographic noises to yourself,” Sam griped as he flicked through the Netflix menu. Dean flipped him off, but Sam wasn’t even looking. Dean glanced down at Cas. He was taking delicate little bites of his pie and Dean swallowed audibly as Castiel’s pink tongue peeked out to lick cream from his chapped lips. Their eyes met and the angel had the audacity to blush. Jesus fucking Christ, he was going to be the end of him.

“I’m pissed they took Dawson’s Creek off of here,” Charlie said as she tapped her fork against her plate. “Michelle Williams was super hot in that,” she sighed.

“Not as hot as Joshua Jackson,” Dean said with a smirk, before taking a mouthful of lemon meringue. The tartness exploded on his tongue, and he sucked in his cheeks. It was good, but the chocolate was better. He scooped up another forkful of the silk and nudged Castiel’s shoulder.

“Here, taste this one,” Dean said and tried not to groan out loud when the dark haired love of his life closed his lips around the fork. Castiel licked every last drop of chocolate off of the tines and Dean forgot to breathe. He felt eyes on him and glanced up to see Benny watching them curiously.

Charlie snorted from her spot on the floor. “Look, ‘A Date with an Angel’ is on here.” She laughed as the movie title scrolled passed. The redhead swiveled around to face Cas and wiggled her eyebrows. “Hey, that reminds me, how was your date, Castiel?”

“Yeah,” Sam cheerfully cut in. “Was it everything you hoped for and more?”

Dean flipped his brother off and Castiel narrowed his eyes.

“Don’t be a satchel of phalluses, Sam.”

There was silence for a beat as Sam goggled at Castiel and Dean tried to hold it together.

“Cas? Did you...did you just call me a bag of dicks?”

Dean laughed so hard he wheezed while poor Charlie and Benny looked on in confusion.

“I had a lovely dinner, Charlie, but I won’t be seeing Balthazar again. At least, not in a non-professional capacity.” Castiel took another bite of pie, then gestured at the television. “What about _Orange is the New black_? "

“Overrated,” came Benny’s reply but Charlie wasn’t done grilling Castiel yet. Dean got up and began collecting everyone’s empty paper plates. Castiel glared at Dean, and he felt Cas’ irritation at being thrown to the wolves. Or, lone nerd wolf, really.

“But why? Was he a total jerk?”

Dean gave Cas a smirk and headed back to the kitchen to throw out the trash. He heard Cas sigh.

“He was a perfect gentleman, but it’s just not going to work out,” Castiel sounded shiftier than one of I.A.B’s rats.

“You’re not going to elaborate?” Charlie persisted and Dean could feel the intense frustration coming off of Castiel in waves. Deciding to take pity on him, Dean walked back into the living room. Sam had landed on _Zombieland_ , to Benny’s approval, and looked up in interest as Dean walked back to Castiel in the chair. Instead of sitting back on the arm, however, Dean proceeded to lower himself in his partner’s lap.

Dean cupped Castiel’s cheeks and Cas gave him a sappy smile. Dean felt all eyes on him as he gently pulled Cas’ mouth to his for a sweet kiss. Dean teased the seam of Cas’ lips with his tongue, tasting honeyed rain and the tartness of lemon. Dean tilted his head, changing the angle of the kiss, making it deeper. Dean felt Cas’ fingers card through his hair as their tongues undulated against each other in a gentle dance.

A loud “What the frak!” had them breaking apart with a loud, sucking pop. Dean turned his head towards Charlie while Castiel huffed out a laugh, burying his heated face into the crook of Dean’s neck. Dean could tell he was embarrassed, but mixed with the mortification was a blinding joy. Dean guessed from no longer having to hide their feelings; that was how Dean was feeling at least.

“Yeah, well. It’s kind of frowned upon to keep dating other people when you find your true mate,” Dean said in a casual tone that he knew was fooling no one.

Castiel peeked out from Dean’s neck. “Charlie, I believe the expression _‘You’re going to catch flies_ ’ applies here,” he said gently and she immediately closed her mouth.

Dean looked at Sam who was just watching the proceedings with an amused expression. Dean slid his gaze over to Benny and couldn’t help noticing that he looked a little ... disappointed? Something of Dean’s questioning must have shown on his face because Benny’s expression cleared quickly and he held up his beer in salute.

“Congratulations, brother. I’m happy for you guys,” the vampire drawled.

“Thank you, Benny,” Castiel said sincerely.

“Okay, screw the movie, I want details,” Charlie said, bouncing in place on the rug. “When did this start? Do you feel different? Can you do cool coupley-mind things?”

Dean looked at Castiel, his panicked expression making him snicker. “Settle down firecracker. One question at a time.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I.A.B. : Internal affairs bureau


	14. Chapter 14

“Charlie asks a lot of questions,” Castiel said as he threw out a congealed plate of nachos. He felt drained. Looking at Dean, exhaustion showed on his face as well.

“No kidding. God, I’m tired. Are you tired? Are we feeling double the tired?” Dean rubbed his eyes and Castiel yawned in solidarity.

Sam laughed as he tossed empty bottles into the recycling barrel next to the trash. “Why don’t you guys just head off to bed? I’ll get the rest of this.”

Castiel could have cried with gratitude. “Really? Thank you, Sam. I’m sorry I called you a satchel of phalluses,” he said earnestly and Sam laughed again.

“It’s okay, buddy. I forgive you.”

“Yeah, thanks Sammy. I’ll do big breakfast tomorrow, okay?”

“As long as there’s fru-”

“Fruit salad, yeah, I know you hippie.” Dean took Castiel by the hand and tugged him towards the bedroom hallway. Sam’s voice had them pausing.

“Just, try to keep it down, alright?” Before Dean could snarkily remind Sam that this was _his_ apartment, Castiel spoke up.

“I honestly cannot promise you that Sam,” Cas said sincerely, “may I suggest investing in some wax ear plugs for the foreseeable future?” Castiel could feel the amusement rippling through Dean as he tried to hold back laughter.

“Uh, yeah, sure Cas,” Sam said awkwardly. “I’ll keep that in mind.”

When they entered Dean’s room, there was no talking. They both kicked off their shoes and emptied their pockets. Dean’s phone and loose change on the nightstand and Castiel’s phone and keys wound up on the dresser.

It was as if they did this everyday. The mood was comfortable, content with a hint of anticipation. Dean’s lips curved up in a smile and he locked eyes with Castiel. Cas felt an intense wave of affection and his own lips quirked up in his trademark half smile. Dean crowded into his space, fingers reaching out to loosen Castiel’s blue striped tie. Dean huffed out a laugh as he started to pull the knot loose.

“What is it?” Castiel asked, fingers hooking in Dean’s belt loops.

“Nothing, nothing. It’s just..it’s so easy, man. Doesn’t it feel easy?” There was wonder in Dean’s voice and Castiel pulled Dean in closer so that their noses were almost touching, Dean’s hands still clutching Cas’ tie.

“We are true mates, _Ol Monons_. We will fit like the pieces of a puzzle,” Castiel arched a brow as he continued. “We will love passionately, as will we fight. But always,” Castiel paused to cup Dean’s face, thumbing his cheekbones, “underneath will be the feeling of belonging."

Dean must have been holding his breath, because it escaped in a loud whoosh and he laughed sheepishly. Castiel couldn’t help but gaze at him with naked affection.

Dean finished unknotting the tie and grinned. “And to think you wanted to pass all this up.”

Castiel knew Dean meant it as a joke, no doubt hoping for a laugh or an eye roll, but instead it made his stomach clench. Castiel gripped Dean’s hips tight, and his voice came out harsh with his emotion.

“Do not remind me of our wasted time,” he whispered before surging forward to claim Dean’s mouth with his own. The kiss was rough and needy and someone whimpered, but Cas couldn’t be sure who. His hands blindly went to fist in Dean’s hair, tilting his partner's head to get the angle he wanted. Castiel felt Dean’s fingers playing at the buttons of his shirt stumble when Cas’ tongue rolled sinuously against his. Castiel nipped at Dean’s bottom lip and he moaned appreciatively.

It took more than a few minutes for the sound of both of their cell phones to break through the haze of desire. It was hard when every emotion was amplified. They pulled away, hands gripping each other's hips, foreheads pressed together and breath coming in pants.

“Dispatch,” Dean gritted out. Castiel knew it was the one ringtone that wasn’t personalized, just the standard ring of a phone. Castiel’s own phone had fallen silent, but Dean’s was still chiming. Castiel watched as Dean grabbed his phone from the nightstand and swiped it, putting it on speaker.

“Winchester.”

“Detective Winchester. Request that you and your partner report to 121 Taylor Ave in the starlight district. Attempts to reach Castiel have gone-”

“I’m here, Layla,” Castiel said, recognizing the soft, kind voice of the weekend dispatcher. “Who is the officer on scene?”

“The body was reported by some clubgoers and Officer Bass was the first to arrive. He has the area cordoned off and the wits detained for you.”

Castiel heard Dean hum in approval. “That’s good. Kids got good eyes,” Dean murmured and Castiel tried to place in his mind who Bass was. “Alright, thanks Layla,” Dean glanced down at his watch. “ETA is about twenty minutes.”

Dean hung up the phone. Castiel knew that Layla probably could have told them more, but it was imperative to walk into a crime scene blind. Preconceived notions could interfere with a case. Castiel did up the few buttons Dean had managed to pop loose then fixed his tie. Backwards, but that was no different than usual. He hated ties. A glance in the mirror above the dresser showed kiss bitten lips and looking at Dean, Cas could see that his partner fared no better. Dean’s burnt honey hair looked electrocuted and part of Castiel felt proud about that.

Dean tugged on his boots and winked at Cas. “I guess this is to be continued, huh?” Castiel nodded grimly as he watched Dean strap on his belt.

“So it would seem,” Castiel pressed a hard kiss to Dean’s lips. “Probably not going to able to do that for awhile. I’m going to run out to my car and grab my field kit. I’ll meet you at the Impala?”

Dean nodded and Cas could feel the sadness coming off of him. “Yeah, okay. I’m just going to leave a note for Sammy. Definitely not the plans I had for us at 1am.”

“No, definitely not. I’ll see you in a minute.” Castiel went back into the living room to get his coat out of the closet. When he made it outside, the air had chilled. The door to the building clicked shut behind him and the smell of a cigar had him lifting his head to the balcony above.

“Goodnight, Frank.”

“Be safe, detective.”

Castiel allowed himself a moment's disappointment at having his evening with Dean spoiled before putting it away. The loss of someone's life was infinitely more important than that of intercourse, no matter how life altering it was going to be. Castiel unlocked his trunk and grabbed his field kit and headed back to Dean’s car. He watched as his partner came out of the building and had a brief word with Frank. Then he was striding towards Cas, his skin a sickly yellow color under the garish parking lot lights. Dean’s shoulders were squared and gone was the tender man whose lips he’d kissed in the bedroom. In his place was his partner, a man who would work tirelessly until whoever was responsible for the crime scene they were about to witness, was caught and brought to justice.


	15. Chapter 15

Dean heard Cas leave the apartment and he pocketed his phone. He took a minute to splash some water on his face before going to the closet to grab his leather jacket. He could see that Cas had grabbed his own coat already. He pulled his notebook and pen out of the inside pocket of his jacket and ripped out a piece of paper.

_Sorry about breakfast. Caught a case. Call you later._

_D._

Dean stuck it on the refrigerator with one of those emergency contact magnets with all of the phone numbers for the police, fire and poison control. It was quiet when he got outside, and a little brisk. He said goodbye to Frank, who then went back into his apartment, leaving the smell of cigar smoke lingering in the air.

Dean searched out his Baby, keys in hand, and found Cas leaning against her with his field kit in his hand.

“You think we have time to stop for coffee?,” Dean asked when he reached the car. He unlocked the driver’s side door then leaned across the seat to unlock Cas’.

“Not if you want to make your ETA.” Castiel said, as he fastened his seatbelt.

“Crap.”

Well, at least they weren’t far from the scene. That was one bonus for Dean's apartment. He preferred Castiel's sweet little house, but Dean’s place was right in the middle of Crossroads where everything was within 15 minutes of each other in any direction.

They were headed to the Starlight district. If you wanted to see the latest shows, wanted to trip the light fantastic, the Starlight district was where you went. It was also home to the hottest clubs and college bars. 121  Taylor Ave was the address of the Starlight Park. It was smack dab in the middle of the district. There were tree lined jogger’s paths, picnic tables, a playground and a large fountain flanked with stone fairies. Starlight park was usually where the city of Crossroads set up for their marathons, charity walks and Pride parades. Annual clambakes, and Fourth of July celebrations where a temporary band stand would set up, along with carnival games. On those special occasions, people could lounge on blankets at the park and see the fireworks blasting from the barges on the East river.

Unfortunately, none of these were activities that Jacie Hudgens would be participating in ever again.

Dean pulled up to the curb and flicked on his hazards. The entrance to the park had been sealed off and a rookie he didn’t recognize was guarding the entrance. Sitting on the grass were three college age kids, all looking pale and sick. The ones who had discovered the bodies, more than likely. He knew that meant that Officer Bass was still with the victim.

Without words, Dean and Castiel both opened their field kits, and pulled out their mini recorders. Dean attached his to his shirt collar while Cas’ went on his lapel. After, they leaned against the Impala, pulling on gloves and shoe coverings before approaching the entrance.

“Officer…”Dean looked at the badge pinned to the dress blues in front of him, “ Campbell, report?” Dean said as he and Castiel reached the caution tape.

“Yes, sir. The body was found by these three civilians over here. They called 911 and Officer Bass and I were first to respond. We took statements from the wits, none of them heard or saw anything, except for the body. The guy, he said he actually thought the victim had just passed out, and it wasn’t until they got up close to her that they realized she was dead. Officer Bass stayed behind with the body to wait for you and your partner to arrive.”

“Okay, how far in is Officer Bass?”

“He’s towards the middle on the left, sir. The body was found laid out on the ledge of the fountain.”

“Thank you, Officer Campbell,” came Castiel’s gravelly voice. “If you could stay with the witnesses until we get back from examining the body.” They all understood that it wasn’t a question.

Dean went over to the trio huddled together on the grass. A sweet, round faced blonde with dripping lashes jerked to attention when Dean kneeled before her.

“Hey, there. Rough night, huh?” Dean said softly and the blonde’s raven haired companions, brother and sister it looked like, snorted.

“Understatement,” the blonde said with the barest hint of a smile.

"I know this has been hard on you guys, and my partner and I are going to be as quick as possible, but I need you wait just a little longer. We’re going to go check out the scene, and then we’re gonna have to ask you some questions, okay?”

The blonde and the dark haired boy nodded, but the other girl looked confused. “We already gave our statements, what else could we have to say?”

Castiel stepped in and met the girl’s eyes. “We may have some different questions for you after we have seen the victim. What I would like you all to do is to think. Think long and hard, try and remember if you heard any kind of noise. Even if it’s just a bird or a car horn. Anything you can think of might help. We will be back to speak with you shortly.”

“Man, sucks to be them,” Dean said as he and Cas ducked under the caution tape to head into the park. “Just having a fun night on the town. Hell, that blonde looks newly 21. I’m sure this is not how they expected their evenings to turn out.”

Castiel quirked his lips. “Seems to be a pattern tonight.”

Dean hummed in agreement as the made their way through the park. Up ahead, Dean could see Officer Bass waiting for them. He turned to look at Castiel when the angel let out a drawn out sigh.

“What’s the matter, Cas?”

Castiel looked at him with a raised brow. “Aaron is Officer Bass? Aaron who’d like to ask you out, Aaron?”

Dean grinned at the petulant tone of Cas’ voice and rubbed the back of his neck. “He’s a very competent rookie,” Dean said.

“Mmhmm.”

“I’m sure he wouldn’t have requested the paranormal division without reason,” Dean placated.

“I should certainly hope not,” Castiel said firmly as they approached Aaron. “Report?” Cas asked briskly before Dean could say anything.

“Yes, sir.  The call came in at 11:30 pm. Officer Campbell and myself were the closest to the scene. After verifying the victim was indeed deceased, we took statements from the witnesses. Sarah Lindt and Izzie and Owen Thomas, siblings. Wits say they were cutting through the park to get back to their dorms after shooting pool and drinking over at The Cabby Shack. The male, Owen, said that they saw the woman lying on the fountain edge and approached to see if she was okay.”

Dean could see the body out of his peripheral as he listened to Aaron talk.

“It wasn’t until he got up close that he could see the stab wound, and that the victims lip were blue.”

“Any particular reason you called the PHD instead of Mills and Hascum out of Homicide?” Castiel asked sharply, but Aaron didn’t seem phased by the angel’s tone.

“Yes. There is a note pinned to the body that made me think it was going to be your kind of case.”

Dean and Castiel made their way over to the body. The girl looked to be about 5’6, probably around 135 pounds. Her dark brown hair spread like a fan behind her on the cold stone of the fountain ledge.  Dean watched as Castiel reached out with a gloved hand to touch the girl’s forehead. One bonus when working with an angel, it was like having a Medical examiner. They would have to call in the official M.E., but in the meantime, one touch from Cas and he could tell the age and how a victim had been killed. The why, however, was up to them to solve.

“She was 24,” Castiel said softly. “Single stab wound through the heart.”

Dean looked down at the young woman, noting the she wore a billowy white gown and matching sandals. He saw no stab wound. A note, on blue stationery, was pinned to her buttoned bodice. Carefully avoiding it for now, Dean unbuttoned the dress to see the entry wound.

“She was obviously not killed here. The body is too clean. No blood around the wound,” Dean said, roughly, heart aching for the next of kin he knew he’d be identifying that night. 24. _Too fucking young_. Dean buttoned the dress back up, to preserve modesty even in death.

“I agree,” Castiel said, as he leaned over the woman. “She smells clean too. I wouldn’t be surprised if she were freshly washed and dressed before being dropped here. We’ll need the lab to confirm, but I would guess some kind of high quality body cleanser.”

Dean nodded in agreement, before carefully unpinning the note. Castiel pulled an evidence bag out of his field kit and Dean read the note aloud.

_On angel wings you do fly_

_On angel wings into the sky_

_On angel wings I do cry_

_Because those angel wings took you away_

Castiel cocked his head. “It’s a piece from a poem. _Troy Nichols_ if I’m not mistaken.”

“Do you think this girl could have been an angel? I mean, there are no burnt wings, but this isn’t the kill sight.” Dean said.

Castiel shook his head. “No. I would know immediately if it were. And there is no identification on her,” Dean could feel the frustration burning inside Castiel and knew it was because Cas couldn’t identify her. Before he became earthbound, Castiel would have been able to touch her forehead and know everything about her. Living amongst humans, the ability wore off. Something about a level playing field. To live with humans meant abiding by their rules, and surely, the ability to touch and know ones every last secret broke those rules. Still, Castiel hated having to wait.

“We’re going to have to call the M.E. to come pick her up, we aren’t going to be able to identify her until they run her prints or dental. Bass,” Dean called over to Aaron who had been hanging back but watching closely. “Call the station, get M.E. Visyak down here to take her in. Tell her we found no I.D. Asap.” Dean looked down at the note again, and Castiel peered over his shoulder.

“What do you think this means?  Just a religious prayer, or something more connected to actual angels?” Dean asked quietly, anger and sadness surrounding him like a cloud. Castiel sighed.

“I’m not sure. We need to set up a murder board. We need her I.D. But first, we need to go talk to those kids.

“Detective Winchester,” Aaron interrupted, “M.E. Visyak is five minutes out.”

“Okay, thanks Aaron. Cas, you want to go talk to the wits and I’ll wait for Eleanor? ”

Castiel narrowed his eyes, gaze skittering briefly on Aaron before settling back on Dean. “How about you go talk to the witnesses, and I wait for Eleanor?”

Dean could practically feel Castiel daring him to challenge him, so instead he just winked at him and headed back out towards the entrance.

 


	16. Chapter 16

Castiel watched Dean walk away, but the air of anger and sadness remained. Dean always took every death personally, as though he could have saved them somehow, with no prior knowledge. Castiel had said to him once: _You can’t save everyone, my friend. Though you try._ Dean had smiled, acknowledging the truth of the statement, but Cas had known that the dead still weighed on him. Until now, in the early hours of the morning, Castiel hadn’t known how much. Apparently Dean had been the master of disguise when it came to emotions. But now, he was like an open book. The rage that Castiel felt at someone cutting such a young life short was doubled. Dean’s feelings were washing over him and Castiel needed to dig deep to stop the bleed or he would be overwhelmed.

There was an awkward silence as Castiel and Aaron waited for the M.E.

“So you determined you should call the PHD because the note mentioned angels?” Castiel asked the young officer. Not that he disagreed. His gut feeling told him that this was indeed a crime befitting the Paranormal Homicide Division.

Aaron tugged at his short beard, twitchily, and nodded.. “Yes sir. We were taught at the academy that if anything at the crime scene even hinted at supernatural elements, then it was to be called into the PHD.”

Castiel gave him a long look before nodding in agreement. “Good job, officer,” he finally said and saw Aaron exhale in relief. “Happy to see you were following procedure and not just using the crime scene as an excuse to tag Detective Winchester.” Castiel said smartly and the rookie blanched. Aaron was spared the stuttering denial when the sound of heels clicking across the path caught their attention.

An elegant blonde in a well tailored pantsuit in lemon yellow approached them. She had a medical bag clutched in her hand with the same grace women clutched their purses.

“Castiel,” came a rich voice, “a pleasure to see you. Sorry it’s under these circumstances. The EMT’s are a few minutes behind me.”

“Lovely to see you as well, Eleanor,” Castiel said, briefly squeezing her hand. They both walked back to the body and Dr. Visyak pulled a pair of gloves out her bag and slipped them on to begin her cursory exam. She would perform a more thorough one once she had the body at home in the morgue. Castiel stepped back and let her work.

“Single stab wound, through the heart,” Dr. Visyak said, now wearing goggles pulled from her bag. She leaned down to get a closer look at the wound she’d uncovered. “Smooth blade, not serrated. The body has been cleaned, or we’d see more blood.  I can give you an estimate on TOD. Rigarmortis, as you know takes anywhere from two to four hours after death to start and it has not fully set in, so my initial guess would be somewhere between 10:00 pm and 12am.”

Castiel nodded. “Yes, and I think she was brought here closer to midnight than 10pm, otherwise this would have been called in sooner. A lot of people cut through this park at night to get to the subway or the buses back to their dorms. She definitely would have been noticed earlier.” Castiel watched as Dr. Visyak leaned back and then, like Dean, buttoned her back up, respectfully.

“Let’s see if we can’t get her I.D. through her prints.” Dr. Visyak pulled a small black box from her bag. It looked like a cell phone, only thicker. There was an opening at the end and Castiel watched as she slipped the victim’s thumb in the slot. It scanned the print directly into the NYPD database. Technology,as Charlie was oft to tell him, was fucking amazing.

“This will take a couple of minutes to run through the system.”

Castiel nodded. He knew that unless their victim had been arrested at some point in her young life, then they would have to wait for the dental records.

“Well, it looks like we are going to get lucky,” the pretty M.E. said as she looked down at the scanner to read the results.. “Our girl here was arrested at a Pride parade last summer. D. O. B. July 13th, 1994, living at 43 White Horse Beach Rd, Crossroads, NY. Next of kin is a mother, Angela Hudgens in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Father, Timothy Hudgens is deceased.”

“Can you shoot that data over to me?” Castiel asked her.

“Sure thing.” Before she even finished answering him, he felt the buzz in his pocket letting him know that Dr. Visyak had sent him the link to all of Jacie’s information.

“Castiel.”

The angel looked up at the alarmed tone of the M.E.’s voice. She was still staring down at her scanner, obviously still reading the information.

“What is it?

“She’s registered.”

It took him longer than it should have.

_Registered._

“Damn it,” he breathed, taking out his phone to pull the information up himself. “Registered just last month, bonded to Ambriel.” Castiel clicked the link to the angel’s name. “Same address. It may already be too late to get any information out of her. The remaining mate barely lasts over two hours, very rarely three. And that is assuming she is even at home.” Castiel was aware that he was talking out loud to himself, but neither Aaron or Dr. Visyak interrupted, instead just stood by patiently.

The EMT’s rolled up the path, and pulled a gurney out of the back of the ambulance. Castiel needed to meet back up with Dean. Dr. Visyak would stay while they loaded Jacie in and brought her to the morgue. _Speaking of Dean…_ Castiel opened his message screen to text his partner.

_From You: Are you finished?_

Castiel thanked Dr. Visyak and she promised to send along her report once she had done a thorough exam of the body, and to have forensics get in touch if they found any skin under Jacie’s nails that wasn’t hers, and what kind of soap or shampoo was used to cleanse the body. Tracking down purchases like that was an extreme long shot, but every once in awhile, it happens.

Castiel nodded over at Aaron. “Good job tonight, Bass. File your report, then get some sleep.

“Thank you, sir. I hope if you and Detective Winchester have to put a team together, you’ll think of me.”

Castiel’s phone buzzed in his hand and he paused in his stride to the entrance of the park.

_From Dean: Yeah, they didn’t tell me anything more than what they already told Aaron. You? Ya get I.D.?_

Castiel forewent the texting and just called Dean directly.

“Cas?” came Dean’s voice after the first ring.

“Meet me at the Impala.”

“You get an I.D.?”

“Yes, but it’s more complicated than that.” Castiel could see Dean now, his leather clad back was facing the entrance of the park as he stood talking into the phone.

“Complicated how?” Dean’s voice rang out in the air and in his ear through the cell.

“Very,” he said and Dean whipped around at the sound of his voice. Castiel felt a rush of love and affection marry with his own devotion as he strode towards Dean, phone still at his ear.

“Hello, Dean.”

“Heya, Cas,” Dean’s lips curved up as Castiel stepped in closer.

“I’m going to hang up now,” he deadpanned, fighting the urge to kiss Dean’s plump lips.

“Yeah, okay.” Dean smiled at him fondly, and Castiel knew that Dean was feeling his urge to step out of the professional role for just a few moments and indulge. Instead, they walked to their appropriate sides of the car. Castiel waited while Dean unlocked his door and then leaned over to let him in. Castiel slid into his seat and pulled on his seatbelt.

“You said you got an I.D.” Dean said as he started the car. “Give me the address of next of kin so I can put it in the GPS.”

“It’s 43 White Horse Beach Rd,” Castiel said and watched as Dean punched it into the google maps app on his phone before attaching it to the holder on the dash. “Her name was Jacie Hudgens” Castiel said as he went through his own phone to send the link to Dean. “But we aren’t notifying the next of kin yet, that is Jacie’s address.”

“What? Why? _Son of a bitch_ ,” Dean laid on the horn for a beat as a cabby cut them off. “Dick. Why aren’t we notifying her family? I don’t want them to find out on the 6 o’clock news.”  Castiel waited for the computerized voice to tell Dean to turn left before he answered.

“Well, for one, her mother lives in Colorado, so the only notifying we will be doing is over the phone. But it has to wait. We’re probably already out of time, but we have to check.”

“Check what, dude? You haven’t given me any answers on what we’re doing, man.”

“She was registered, Dean. She’s mated to an angel. Ambriel.”

“Oh shit.”

“Oh shit, indeed. That means depending on time of death…”

“This poor girl’s angel could already be dying or dead by now. Did you try praying to her? This Ambriel? Did you know her?”

“I didn’t know her personally, no. She was not created with my clutch. She came later. And when I tried to pray to her, I heard nothing back.”

“That’s not a good sign,” Dean said.

“Yes, probably not,” Castiel looked on the dash at Dean’s phone. Ten minutes until the estimated time of arrival.

“She wasn’t wearing a ring.”

“What?” Castiel cocked his head, staring at Dean’s gorgeous profile, the tight line of his jaw, as he drove.

“She didn’t have a wedding ring.”

“Not all mated pairs believe in marriage, Dean, you know that.”

“Yeah, yeah, it’s a spiritual bond, no need for human tradition, blah blah blah. Fuck that, you’re wearing my ring.”

Castiel snorted inelegantly. “If that is your idea of a proposal, I must tell you, it was severely lacking,” he said dryly as Dean pulled onto Whitehorse Beach Rd.

“Jesus, Cas,” Dean scoffed, “Give me some credit. When I propose, it’ll be romantic as fuck.”

“Romantic as fuck, huh? Every angel’s dream.”

Dean rolled his eyes as he pulled up the driveway to a small white Cape. “Haha, you done, smartass?”

“For now,” Castiel appreciated Dean’s attempt to keep things light. They both knew what they were most likely walking into. Cas could feel the dread and sadness, that Dean was hiding behind sass, and Castiel knew it matched his own feelings.

“Alright,” Dean said as he leaned across Cas to open the glove compartment. Castiel knew that is where Dean kept his lock pick kit. “Let’s get this over with. Honestly, I hope she is here, even if…” he didn’t finish but Castiel understood.

“Or we’ll just be getting another phone call later when someone finds the imprint of her wings,” Castiel said softly. In tandem, they exited the car, ready to face another potential,death.


	17. Chapter 17

Dean slid out of the car and waited for Castiel to join him. He flicked on his recorder and waited until Cas did the same before speaking.

“Detective Winchester and Castiel on the premises of possible victim, Ambriel, angel,” Dean said as they walked up the flower lined drive. Dean glanced around the neighborhood. There was no car in the drive of the house on the left, but a station wagon with a bike on the back was across the street, and a Toyota with a handicap plate on the right.

When they reached the door, Castiel rapped sharply. “NYPD, do you need assistence?” Castiel rapped again. “Ambriel, if you can respond, please do so.”

Dean pulled the lock pick case out of his inside pocket. “Let the record show that there was no response. We are now letting ourselves in the home.”

The door opened with a quiet snick and a quick sweep of the first level showed no one. The house felt quiet, empty. Dean and Castiel methodically checked each room on both levels, ending with the master bedroom on the end. With Cas at his back, Dean turned the knob and pushed the door open.

The first thought that went through Dean’s mind was _feminine._ The room had a distinctly female touch in a way that was both comforting and sexy. Filmy rose colored drapes lined the windows and a soft heather carpet was under his feet. Framed art of angels, both cherubic and fierce adorned the walls. Dean could see decorative glass bowls filled with potpourri sitting in the window sills and on top of the wide bureau. The room smelled of Jasmine and vanilla and death.

With a heavy heart and stolen breath Dean looked at what else was dominating the room. He heard Castiel suck in a breath. Dean turned and saw his partner, standing there, staring at the still form of a woman, jet black hair spilling across the bright yellow pillowcase. The imprint of her large wings spanned the width of the California King she laid upon. Castiel’s face was blank, but Dean could feel the pity and sadness from the loss of a fallen sister eating away at him.

Dean knew that before long, a soul ferrier angel would come and collect the body, and carry her to heaven. Staring at the shadow of once brilliant wings was horrific. Just the thought of that happening to Castiel made him sick to his stomach. He found himself gripping Cas’ shoulder and the angel reached back to cover Dean’s hand with his own.

“Breathe, Dean.” came the gentle reminder and he expelled a flood of air from his lungs that he wasn’t aware of holding. Dean squared his shoulders and moved forward. Ambriel’s dark eyes were wide open and had the film of death. There were dried tear tracks on her face, telling him that she had passed within the last hour or so. Her left hand was outstretched and fingers clasped as though she was holding something. Dean glanced down on the carpet next to the bed and found a wooden frame, face down. He reached a gloved hand down and picked up the picture. The smiling faces of Jacie and Ambriel, arms wrapped around each other with the beach behind them, beamed back at him. Dean swallowed past a lump in his throat.

“Alright,” Dean said, voice raspy. “Call it in."

On the way into the precinct Dean shot a text off to Bobby, promising to copy him with a report asap. While they waited for an update from forensics and Dr. Visyak on Jacie Hudgens, Castiel dealt with the unpleasant task of calling her mother to notify her of her daughter’s death. There was no one to notify on Ambriel’s side, as there were no angels from her clutch earthbound.

After they had called in Ambriel's death, they searched the premises for a purse or a cellphone, and found none. Dean figured they were either tossed or kept by the killer as a souvenir.

Dean began to set up the murder board while Castiel was on the phone.

“I know this is hard, Ma’am, but can you give me a list of Jacie’s friends here in New York? Anyone who would know her routines, where she would be going on a Saturday night?” Dean glanced over at Castiel at his desk, pen tapping against his notebook, brows furrowed. “Okay. Is that two n’s or one? No, no, that’s okay. Believe me, every little bit helps and you are doing just fine. Alright. Yes, that is all for now. Again, you have mine and my partner’s deepest sympathies and we will call when your daughter can be released to your care.” The call ended and Castiel dropped his head in his hands, sighing heavily.

“It never gets any easier, does it?”

“No,” came Cas’ voice, muffled from his hands and Dean allowed himself to do something he’s never been able to do before. Offer physical comfort. Dean walked up behind Castiel and gently kneaded his shoulders. Cas sighed and leaned back, letting his head fall back against Dean’s stomach, eyes closed.

“For the first ten minutes, she just weeped. It’s just her now. Jacie was an only child, her husband died in a car crash a few years back. Said that Jacie moved here to go to Juilliard.  She never made it to Broadway, but did make a decent living as an instructor. She taught jazz and tap at Rowena MacLeod’s dance company.”

Dean leaned down to press a kiss to the top of Cas’ head before coming to his front to prop himself on the corner of the angel’s desk.

“She gave me the names of two friends she knows about here in Crossroads, and told me that Ambriel worked at the hospital, which conveniently-”

“Is where Kevin and Gabriel work,” Dean finished. He looked down at his wristwatch. How was it only 6am? “I say we wait an hour, write up what we can now to send to Bobby, before hitting up Jacie’s neighbors.  Then I can head over to Rowena’s after I drop you at the hospital?” Even as he said it, he felt the wrongness, the hesitance. He just didn’t know if it was his own or Castiel’s.

“Or we could stay together. I don’t know about you, but I’d like to stop back at the apartment to shower and change at some point. And we need to make time to-” Castiel stopped talking to look down at his notes, “to speak with Connor Pike and Haley Collins” he said as he pulled his email up on his ancient HP.  Cas lifted blue eyes to Dean and they locked gazes. Dean knew he was feeling the same thing Castiel was; a kinship with this couple whose life together had been cut brutally short. Dean looked over at his murder board, the pictures of Jacie Hudgens in death, the stark picture of Ambriel and her ashed out wings tacked next to a copy of the happy, smiling beach picture. Written along the side in his block letters was the estimated time of death. A notification sounded through the speaker of Castiel’s computer, tearing Dean’s eyes away from the board.

“Forensics,” Castiel said. “No skin or hair under her nails. No sign of sexual trauma.”

“Small mercy.”

“Yes. They were able to narrow down the shampoo and body wash used to cleanse her. Philip B.-Russian amber imperial shampoo.”

Dean pulled the brand up on his phone. “Holy shit. Stuff goes for $156 for 12 ounces.”

“Then there is La Mer cleansing gel,” Castiel added.

“90 fucking dollars for 6.7 ounces. That shit better be made with gold dust and unicorn horns,” Dean snarked, pleased when Castiel snorted out a laugh.

“It’s still going to be next to impossible to track. Even if the killer bought locally instead of online or outside of the city. I doubt whoever it was used a credit card, and cash purchases are hard to track,” Castiel pointed out.

“True,” Dean acknowledged, “But it looks like both of these can only be purchased at _Barney’s_ and two specialty salons in the city. Gadreel’s Day Spa and Vanity Hair. Bass wanted in. I say we let him take these.”

Castiel nodded thoughtfully. “It would be something he could cut his teeth on. Tell him to have them go back three months to be safe and cross reference with any repeat customers. Ask him to make sure he checks to see if anyone making any large cash purchases stood out to any of the employees. If so, get a sketch artist in there if there is no record.”

Dean added the product names to the board. “Alright. I’ll tag Aaron, then we swing by Jacie’s neighbors before we head back home to shower and change.”

“Then what? Rowena’s or the hospital?” Castiel cocked a brow in question.

“I say hospital. It’s a Sunday, I doubt dance school is open. We’ll have to get Rowena’s home address and make a house call.”

Castiel stood up from his desk and stretched, rotating his neck from side to side. Dean watched from the murder board as the angel walked into his space, until his breath was close enough to fan his face. Deans own breath hitched when gentle long fingered hands brushed his cheekbones before sliding to lace at the back of his neck. Dean stood still, letting Cas run the show. Dean felt a staggering amount of pure need pulse out at him before Cas’ lips found his. Dean nearly whimpered at the sweet press of lips. The kiss was soft, lips catching and releasing almost chastely, save the slight nip Castiel gave his bottom lip at the end.

Dean smiled against Cas’ lips. “You make my brain go fuzzy.”

Castiel grinned at that. “It’s going to be a busy day. So I’ll say I love you, now.”

“I love you, too,” Dean echoed, and pulled Castiel in tight, burying his face in the crook of his mate’s neck. “So, so much."


	18. Chapter 18

 

Miss Elsie Jane Simmons was more than happy to play host to New york’s finest at 7:30 in the morning. The spry 83 year old in a hot pink track suit and pearls, ushered Castiel and Dean into her spacious country kitchen. She poured them each a cup of freshly brewed coffee, urging them to sit down as she placed a bowl of sugar and cream dispenser in Jersey cow motif on the table.

“Now, what is this all about, boys?” Elsie asked, tone business like. “No cops be showing up at this hour with good news,” she said knowingly.

“No, Ma’am,” Castiel agreed solemnly. “We’re here about your neighbors, Jacie Hudgens and Ambriel.”

Castiel could see Elsie’s hand falter as she spooned sugar into her cup. ‘Oh no. Did something happen to those sweet girls? They’re engaged, you know.”

“Yes Ma’am. I’m sorry to say that Jacie Hudgen’s was murdered last night.” Castiel watched as her cup clattered to the table, but Dean, ever observant, was already there to start cleaning the splatter.  Elsie’s light blue eyes filled with tears as she brought a trembling hand to her mouth.

“Why? Why would someone hurt such a lovely girl? You know, when I broke my hip last year, she and Ambriel did all of my grocery shopping. They took me to doctor’s appointments when my sister’s family wasn’t able...oh! Oh my goodness, Ambriel. The poor dear. Can I see her?”

Castiel hated this part. The part where he had to dash more hopes and cause more pain. He lifted his eyes to Dean’s and they locked across the table. Dean took the hint and nodded.

“Elsie Jane,” Dean started softly, speaking for the first time. Castiel watched as his partner clasped the elderly woman’s hand in his own. “Were you aware that Ambriel was an angel?”

“Was? Yes, but...oh no,” there was no holding back the weeping now. “I-I didn’t even think. They are so young to be mated. God, if they had just waited, then at least one of them…” Castiel felt a pang go through him at her words, as they hit too close to home.

“I know,” Dean said, glancing at Castiel for a split second. “It is truly tragic. But Ma’am? We need your help.”

Elsie drew herself up at that. Castiel felt a surge of affection as the woman pulled herself together.

“Anything. Anything you need to get those sweet girls justice.”

“Can you tell us if you have noticed any strange cars in the neighborhood. Or anyone in general walking around who doesn’t belong?” Dean asked and Castiel appreciated how Elsie actually took the time to think before she answered.

“You know, I did see a black van come through here a few days ago. It looped around the cul de sac and left. I just assumed they were lost.” Despite Dean’s recorder being on, Castiel jotted down the information in his notebook anyway.

“Can you tell me where Jacie and Ambriel could usually be found on a Saturday night? Was it common for them to be together or did they tend to do their own thing?” Dean asked, still holding Elsie’s hand. Castiel noticed as a wistful smile stole across Elsie’s face.

“Saturday was date night,” she said softly. “Usually dinner and a movie. Sometimes a dance club in the Starlight district.”

“Did they usually go together or did they meet up?” Dean asked and Castiel didn’t feel the need to cut in as his partner had Elsie calmed down and comfortable.

“No. Most of the time they would meet. Jacie would get ready at the dance studio. She’s an instructor.”

“Yes, Ma’am,” Dean nodded at her to continue.

“Well, they said that they liked dressing up for each other separately. They liked to surprise each other like that, keep the spark and all. Though I must say, being so young and attractive, I doubt that was ever really a problem,” Elsie said with a sad little chuckle. “Ambriel often worked later than Jacie, anyway, so sometimes she would leave from the hospital.”

“And last night? Did you notice anyone hanging around the house? Did you see Ambriel let anyone inside?”

“No, detective, I’m sorry. I had my bookclub yesterday, I take the senior’s bus to the library every Saturday. When I got back home I had a little nap before dinner with my sister. Her name is Maya Jones if you need to speak with her. She had my nephew Dylan come pick me up at 5pm and he returned me home, oh, it must have been around 8:30. Now I know that the porch light at the girl’s house was not on. They don’t usually turn it on unless one is waiting for the other to come home.”

“Okay, thank you. You wouldn’t happen to know the names of any of the restaurants or clubs that they may have frequented?” Dean asked.

“I’m afraid not.”

Dean nodded over at Cas, and he took that as his cue to stand up. Castiel reached out a hand to shake Elsie’s.

“Thank you for your time, and I am sorry for your loss,” Castiel said gravely and Dean echoed his sentiments.

“Thank you, boys. Now, you’ll keep me informed, won’t you?” Elsie stood up to walk them to the door.

“Yes, of course, and we may need to contact you for additional information,” Castiel said and she nodded her head emphatically.

“Oh, yes, anytime. Any help I can be, I want to do what I can. Though I must confess, I am a little nervous. It’s not something you ever think is going to touch you, is it?”

“No, Ma’am,” Castiel said sadly. “But we will have patrol cars on watch in this area until the person behind this is caught.”

“Well, I admit, that does make me feel better.”

* * *

 

  


The neighbors across the street were no help. They had been on a family vacation all the past week and the night of Jacie and Ambriel’s deaths, the Nicholson family had been sleeping off jet lag.

It was a quiet ride back to Dean’s apartment. Castiel felt sluggish and dirty and he was looking forward to a hot shower and a hot cup of coffee before they headed to the hospital to speak to the staff. Cas had already prayed to Gabriel to let him know to expect them sometime mid-morning. And Kevin...oh father, he hadn’t even thought of Hael and Kevin!

“Cas, sweetheart, what’s wrong? You’re throwing off some huge, panicked vibes man.”

Castiel didn’t even answer, he just dug his cell phone out of his pocket to call his sister, afraid that any prayers to her would be too jumbled to make sense. He dialed and after two rings, Hael picked up.

“Brother. To what do I owe this early morning wake-up call?” Hael teased. Castiel knew that Sundays she and Ollie lounged in their pajamas watching movies together. In the background he could hear _Moana_ , and his nephew begging to please talk to Unca Cas. Somehow that sweet little voice calmed his nerves a bit. Dean reaching over to hold his free hand didn’t hurt either.

“Yes, I’m sorry. Dean and I are working a case. You might hear it on the news or from Kevin.”

“Why Kevin?”

“He knew one of the victims. A young woman was murdered. She was mated to an angel who works at Crossroads Gen. Her name was Ambriel.” Castiel heard his sister suck in a breath.

“Oh no. You mean Jacie? Jacie was m-u-r-d-e-r-e-d?” Hael often spelled so that little ears didn’t overhear grown up things.

“You knew them?” Castiel asked and he felt Dean’s eyes on him.

“Not well, but they have both been at some of the hospital functions together. I walked on their team at the Breast Cancer walk and they sat with Kevin, Gabriel, Ollie and I at the picnic after the Blood Drive last month.They were such a lovely couple. Ambriel worked in the NICU, so Kevin saw her fairly often. This is just awful.”

“Yes it is, and I am sorry to sully your morning with this news, but I just want you to be careful. Dean and I don’t know if this was some random attack or a specific target,” he said carefully.

“Meaning whoever did this could be going after mated pairs?”

“It’s possible, yes. It’s an avenue we are going to have to pursue at least,” Castiel said, thinking of the note pinned to Jacie Hudgen’s body.

Dean squeezed his hand when he hung up with his sister. “She’ll be fine, you know. We’ll make sure. We can make sure we have extra patrol in her neighborhood. Bobby won’t say no, not when it’s your family.”

Castiel smiled at Dean appreciatively, not shocked at all that his first instinct was to protect.

“Now let’s get back to my place so we can shower off this hell of a night, get some coffee, and maybe take a hour long nap before we go to the hospital,” Dean said, firmly, and Castiel knew that there would be no sense arguing.

“Yes, okay. But only an hour. We’ll set alarms.”

“Better. We’ll have the moose wake us up,” Dean teased and Castiel smirked.

“If we showered together, we could probably get an hour and a half,” Castiel deadpanned when they were five minutes away from Dean’s apartment.

Dean threw his head back and laughed. “I like the way you think, angel.”


	19. Chapter 19

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [](http://imgur.com/FRAwKbC)   
> 

Dean figured they must have looked like hammered crap by the time they stumbled in through the door of his apartment. Even Frank had seemed to know that this was not the best time to talk to them. He had just leaned over the balcony with his tin foil hat and saluted them. Sam was on the couch eating what looked like some sort of yogurt with twigs and fucking berries in it and he rolled his eyes.

 “Fucking hippie.”

 Sam frowned. “Really, Dean? You’re both gone all night and all you have to say is fucking hippie?”

 Dean smiled widely as Castiel just shook his head, and walked towards the bedroom. “I’m going to start the water,” he said over his shoulder and Dean threw him a wink.

 “You look wiped, man,” Sam said. “Rough one, huh?”

 “There all rough, but yeah. This sucked. I will fill you in later, but right now I need a shower and a nap. I’m gonna set the alarm, but if you don’t hear me and Cas up by 10:30, wake us please?”

 “You got it. Just don’t be naked, please. I love you both, but I don’t want to see that.”

 “The human body is a beautiful thing, Sammy,” Dean teased as he headed towards his bedroom.

 “Not when it’s your brother and his future husband, asshat,” Sam called after him and Dean felt all warm inside at the thought of Castiel as his husband. Damn, he was getting sappy.  Dean smiled when he entered the room and found Castiel’s clothes littered on the floor. Self-conscious, his angel was not. Dean stripped down himself, once again marveling at how not weird it was to stride naked into the same bathroom his best friend was currently showering in.

A comforting steam had already begun to build up and the delicious smell of rain, citrus and earth filled the room. It was intoxicating.

“Are you going to stand out there all day, or are you coming in?”

“Bossy. I like it,” Dean teased as he pulled back the curtain.

Castiel laughed, nose crinkling adorably. Damn.  Dean had thought Castiel was beautiful before, but wet Cas was a different kettle all together. His dark hair looked almost black, all slicked back from his forehead. Water was running down his cheek, sluicing down his chest and over a decidedly delectable mole next to his right nipple. Dean couldn’t have hid his lascivious gaze if he tried. His eyes followed the slide of water down over the sharp jut of hip bones, to the vee that let to a thatch of dark curls where Cas’ thick cock was starting to plump. Dean lifted his eyes and met Castiel’s deep blue stare. The angel licked his wide, pink lips and smiled, amused, when Dean followed the movement. Castiel stepped back to make room and Dean carefully stepped over the edge.

“We’re not having sex in here,” Castiel said as Dean ducked under the hot spray.

“Why?” Dean asked after soaking his head. Castiel reached out to push the hair out of Dean’s eyes. “You don’t think it’s worth the risk?”

Castiel arched his brow in a way that made Dean’s dick twitch.

“When we have a nice, warm bed nearby? No. Especially on no sleep. We’d be a slip and fall waiting to happen.”

As Castiel talked, Dean filled up his hands with his Old Spice body wash and rubbed them together until they were sudsy. Dean set to work on washing Cas’ body, starting at the shoulders. He worked a lather down his arms, down to his hands, taking care to wash each finger. Dean squeezed out more body wash and started on Castiel’s chest.

“My angel,” Dean said, scrubbing his fingers over pectoral muscles, “always so cautious.” Castiel bit his bottom lip, head falling back against the tiles with a sigh. Dean felt warm all over, little shivers of anticipation making his skin sing, and he knew he was feeding off of Cas’ emotions. Dean sucked in his own breath when a tug at Cas’ nipples made his own harden.

“That’s so trippy,” Dean said in wonder, as his fingers continued their descent. Cas’ response as Dean got to his thigh was a deep groan. Dean worked up a lather, nudging Cas’ legs apart so he could focus on one at a time.

The air was thick and perfumed with Cas’ unique scent, Dean’s soap and their arousal. Dean filled his hands again, before sinking to his knees, bypassing Castiel’s hard cock completely to worship at his feet, then his calves. Castiel looked down at Dean and he could see the angel’s cobalt eyes were nearly black with need.

“ _Norami mad_ ,” Cas’ voice was like liquid smoke and Dean blushed at the compliment. If anyone was divine, it was Castiel. Dean worked his way back up, and reached for the soap again.

“Turn around,” Dean said and Castiel quietly complied, dropping his head forward and bracing himself against the shower wall with his hands. Dean gently kissed the nape of Cas’ neck before he pulled back to soap up his shoulder blades. An electrical charge shot through Dean’s own skin as he massaged where he knew Castiel’s wings were hidden. Cas nearly vibrated underneath Dean’s fingers and a fresh wave of citrus and earth billowed in the hot steam. Dean moaned, unbelievably turned on, and bent down to suck a bruise on Cas’ collar bone. His hands reached around and pulled Castiel back against his chest. Dean’s left hand pressed to his partner’s navel, and kept him in place. Dean’s aching cock slid up and down the crack of Castiel’s perfect ass, as his right hand, slick with soap, reached around to delve into Cas’ bush. Castiel jerked against him and Dean grinded against his ass in response. Dean took Cas’ heavy heat in his hand and began to stroke, gently.

Castiel shuddered, and deep grunts and low whimpers fell from his lips, unbidden. The angel began to thrust earnestly into the slickness of Dean’s tight fist while Dean rutted against him. The catch and drag of his own cock as he slid between Cas’ cheeks was intense, and rapidly stealing Dean’s breath. The acoustics in the shower belied a soundtrack of whimpers, moans and straight out keening. Dean could feel when Castiel was close; both by the feeling inside as the pleasure coiled tighter and tighter, a constant feedback loop of sensation, and by the feeling of Cas’ dick swelling even bigger in Dean’s hand.

Suddenly, Castiel arched back against him, cock pulsing in Dean’s hand, shooting out thick ropes of come. As Dean watched, his head hooked over Castiel’s shoulder, he had to fight not to collapse under the euphoria. His own orgasm came without a hand on him, just the wet slide of his own dick between Castiel’s round globes enough to send him over. The water had long since cooled, but still they stayed under the spray, Castiel braced against the wall and Dean flush against his back. Their heavy panting echoed off of the tile and eventually Dean started laughing. Castiel sluggishly turned in Dean’s arms and buried his face in the crook of his neck. Soon, he too was laughing into Dean’s skin.

“I’m never gonna get used to that,” Dean said, still breathy.

“Mmm. Me neither,” Castiel sighed.

“Fuck, it’s getting cold,” Dean said, pulling back to give Castiel a sweet kiss. “Let’s wash our hair and get out of here.”

Castiel’s brow rose when Dean squirted a white glob of shampoo in his hand and began to massage it through Cas’ hair.

“Island Fantasy?” Castiel smirked as the strong smell of coconut overtook all other scents in the room.

“Shut up,” Dean said, shoving Castiel’s head under the now freezing water, causing him to gasp. “It’s Sammy’s, I’m all out of mine.”

Cas snickered as he finished rinsing, stepping out of the shower as Dean quickly washed and rinsed his own hair. After drying vigorously, they stumbled back into Dean’s bedroom, tiredness setting back in even heavier after intense orgasms.

Dean went and shut his blinds, blocking out the morning sun and pulled back the covers on his bed. He sat on the edge and picked up the alarm clock off of the nightstand. He set it to go off at 10:30 am. Dean noticed that Castiel was still standing at the foot of the bed, yawning and looking around dazedly.

“Whatcha looking for, Cas?” Castiel tilted his head adorably at the question.

“I’m not sure. Oh! My bag. I need boxers, we promised Sam-” Castiel glared at Dean as he started laughing loudly.

“Just get in here. After that shower, there’s no fucking way he thinks we are decent in here.”

Castiel rolled his eyes. “You’re terrible,” he said, but Dean could tell he was amused as the angel crawled into bed. He practically climbed on top of Dean, grasping his face and going in for a long, drugging kiss. It was slow and lazy and perfect. Dean fell asleep with Castiel covering him like a human blanket, the comforting feeling of his warm breath puffing into Dean’s neck.

                                                        


	20. Chapter 20

 

 

The blaring of Dean’s alarm clock was the most unwelcome sound of Castiel’s long existence. The actual hate he felt at such an obnoxious intrusion was borderline scary until he realized he was feeling shared displeasure.

“I don’t want to move,” Cas mumbled into the warmth of Dean’s skin. He opened one bleary eye, taking in the canvas of freckled flesh before him. It wasn’t fair that he couldn’t lay in bed, indulging in making constellations on Dean’s skin. But then he thought of Jacie Hudgen’s and Ambriel and felt selfish. There would be no more lazy mornings in bed for that young couple. Castiel felt Dean’s hand train down his back resting in the dip of his spine.

“Feeling guilty for wanting to stay here, aren’t you?”

“Mhmm.”

Dean sighed. “Yeah, me too. Let’s get out of here. Fuel up on some Joe, and head to the hospital.” Castiel sighed as Dean carded a hand through his hair. “The quicker we take this fucker down, the quicker we can actually enjoy focusing on us.”

Castiel smelled coffee as he trailed Dean out of the room. He’d foregone his usual suit and tie, as Cas hadn’t packed anything besides sweats, jeans and tee shirts. Instead he wore a pair of comfortably worn in Wranglers, a Black Sabbath tee shirt he was pretty sure was Dean’s, and one of Dean’s grey suit jackets.

When he entered the kitchen he heard Dean’s snort of amusement. There sat Sam, hiding his face behind his newspaper, studiously ignoring them.  Castiel found himself blushing as Dean handed him a mug of coffee. Dean rolled his eyes and grabbed him by the collar of his shirt, tugging him in for a loud, smacking kiss. Castiel watched as Dean went into the pantry and pulled out a coffee cake with no nutritional value, but his heart melted a little when he also reached in for a granola bar for Cas and handed it over. Dean ripped open the cellophane of his breakfast and took an obnoxiously large bite of the pastry.

“Silent treatment, Sammy,” Dean asked over a mouthful of food, little crumbs spraying out of his mouth.

Sam’s response was to give Dean the middle finger from behind the arts & leisure section.

“I apologize if we were a little too loud, Sam,” Castiel said earnestly, but Sam just kept staring mutinously at his paper. “In our defense, I did recommend ear plugs,” Castiel said and Dean choked on his cake.

Dean swallowed his pastry and said,“Don’t be a bitch, Sam, it’s been a rough night.”

Something in Dean’s weary tone seemed to sway Sam because he put his paper down and looked at his brother in the eyes.

“That bad?”

“Definitely not good. I can’t really go into detail, but I have a feeling this case is going to be brutal.”

“Alright, since I feel bad for you, and for who you’re standing for now, I’ll let this morning's incident go.”

Dean scoffed. “Gee, thanks for agreeing to look past me having sex in _my_ bathroom, in _my_ apartment, with _my_ boyfriend.”

“You’re welcome, jerk. You guys going to be off all day, I am assuming?”

“More than likely,” Castiel said. “We have interviews to conduct, and we will have to meet with the Lieutenant.”

“Oh, and remind me to tag Charlie to see if we can’t get her on tracking Jacie and Ambriel’s cell phones. They are probably turned off, but if this guy-”

“Or woman,” Castiel said pointedly.

“Or, woman,” Dean amended, “did take them as souvenirs, he might have a hard time resisting turning them on to see if there are messages, or even just to listen to their voices on the voice mail.”

“Wait, so it’s two victims?” Sam piped up, a fork with pineapple speared on it paused on the way to his mouth.

“Yes. The vic was mated to an angel,” Dean said, his voice edgy. Castiel didn’t even bother reminding Dean not to talk about the case with Sam. He knew that his partner often bounced ideas off his brother, and Sam was a smart guy. And he would never repeat anything that was said to him anyway. He was a lawyer in training after all.

Castiel looked at the clock on the cable box. It was almost 11am. “Dean, we need to get going. We have to interview the hospital staff, before we visit Rowena and-”

“And we still have to see Jacie's friends,” Dean finished. “Alright Sam, call us if you need anything.”

“I will. Oh, I talked to Mom, by the way.”

Castiel thought that Sam’s tone sounded way too innocent. Apparently Dean did too because he paused at the door.

“And?”

“And she wants you both there for our next Sunday dinner,” Sam said.

Castiel saw Dean’s shoulders relax. “Is that all? Tell her we’ll be there, barring any-”

“Yeah, yeah, barring any work emergencies, I know. That's why I suggested next week. She, um...she also wants you to bring around your new special someone,” Sam said with a glint in his eye and Castiel felt himself tense.

Dean paused with his hand on the door again. “She what now? Did you tell her about me and Cas?”

Castiel narrowed his eyes at Sam in annoyance. His relationship status with Dean was certainly not his information to tell.

“Of course not. She just started going on and on about how she wanted to see her boys settled and why haven’t I dated anyone since Jessica, and how you were such a workaholic and it kind of slipped out.”

“What do you mean, you just said you didn’t tell!”

“Yes, Sam, please explain,” Castiel said, and his voice must have startled Sam because he watched as the overgrown puppy swallowed nervously.

“I didn’t say you, Cas. I just said that Dean was dating someone, that’s it. She went off on a tangent and next thing I know, the three of us and Dean’s “special someone” were invited to dinner.”

“But I AM Dean’s special someone!”

“Yeah, you are baby,” Dean said with a wink before he turned back to Sam. “You’re a fucking blabbermouth. But that’s fine. When we get to Mom’s and she finds out that Castiel is my boyfriend and that _you knew about it_ , she is gonna be all over you,” Dean clicked his tongue, shooting Sam a finger gun before opening the door. Castiel smiled widely at Sam as the truth of Dean’s words sank in.

“I believe that is what they call karma, Sam.”

Of course they took the Impala, as Dean always insisted they do whenever they carpooled. Castiel sent up a silent prayer to Gabriel, letting him know they were on the way. He cocked his head as he heard Gabriel reply in his mind.

“My brother says that if we pull into the E.R. parking lot, we should go in through the blue entrance and go down the left corridor. At the end of the hall there are family waiting rooms. He has one all cleared out for us, as well as a list of all the people Ambriel worked with that day. All but one of them are on the schedule today,”

Dean nodded, as he pulled onto the highway. “That’s good, saves us from asking. Plus, Kevin will be there, so we should be able to get the lowdown on who she was close too, and who we might want to speak to who wasn’t at work the other day.”

That was very true. Castiel loved his brother in law. He was an excellent doctor, and a kind man. But he gossiped worse than the Golden Girls. If there was anything that happened in Crossroads Gen, you could bet your life savings that Kevin Tran knew about it. Hael found it amusing. Castiel found it a bit disconcerting. But to each his own.

Dean pulled off of the next exit and followed the blue hospital signs the three blocks that it took to get there. Castiel pointed out a fairly close spot in the second row and since they were working, Dean forewent his parking in the back only rule, in the interest of saving time.

When they parked, Dean reached over to squeeze Cas' hand briefly. He didn’t say anything, but Castiel didn’t need him too. With one clench of the hand he felt the _I love you_. They walked briskly to the automatic entrance and entered the germ hub that was the E.R. waiting room.

“I hate that we have to walk through here to get to where we need to go,” Dean said under his breath, walking close next to Castiel, and the angel found himself grinning. Dean was a bit of a germaphobe and cutting through a room full of hacking coughs, runny noses and bloodshot eyes was no doubt freaking him out. When Dean hesitated to touch the doorknob on the exit Castiel rolled his eyes and yanked it open.

“Seriously, Dean? We work with the dead and you’re afraid of the common cold?” Castiel teased and Dean huffed.

“The common cold. Ha. Did you see that one dude? He looked like he had the Motaba virus!”

“That’s a fictional virus, Dean,” Cas said as the neared the end of the hall, lifting a hand in greeting towards Gabriel.

Dean just looked at him, expressionless and Castiel's cheeks began to pinken. "Oh, you were being sarcastic."

Dean winked at Castiel, "it's lucky you're a pretty angel,"

“You're ridiculous.”

“No, I’m adorable, and you know it,” Dean said.

Fuck if he didn’t.


	21. Chapter 21

It was always bizarre for Dean to see Gabriel in his Doctor get up. Well, he knew it wasn’t a get up, but a uniform. Either way, it always looked like a costume to him.

Gabriel ushered them into a pale blue room with nondescript beige couches lining the walls on either side of the room. In between them was a wide rectangular coffee table in blonde wood, covered in a menagerie of magazines. Dean pushed them to the side and sat down. Gabriel sat across from him on the couch and Castiel remained standing, leaning against the wall next to a poster for Cialis which kind of made Dean want to laugh inappropriately.

“Kevin is still in surgery, but I have Ambriel’s two closest work colleagues waiting in the cafeteria to speak with you when you are ready. Plus the nurse who was working the floor with Ambriel Saturday night,” Gabriel lifted his eyes to Castiel. “Kevin said if you can’t wait to speak with him until he is done, then you two were welcome to come over to the house tonight for dinner. He said you could speak with him in his home office, so you wouldn’t have to be worried about Oliver.”

Dean appreciated Gabriel taking the situation seriously and he could tell Castiel did too, by the look of approval he shot his brother.

“Thanks Gabriel, if this does indeed run too long and Kevin is not done, please tell him that we will be happy to join him and Hael for dinner,” Castiel answered, taking Dean’s nod of approval as confirmation.

“Gabe, what can you tell us about Saturday. Can you walk us through any interaction you may have had with Ambriel?”

Gabriel sighed, shaking his head at Dean. “I really didn’t see her very much. The E.R. was really busy and I was going from patient to patient. Ambriel is up on the second floor in the NICU. As far as I know it was pretty quiet there. One of the newborns was able to be moved to a regular room with her mother, I know that she had had a part in that. I’m not sure how much grace she expelled that day. Enough that she didn’t work her full shift. She was supposed to be on until 9pm but I know she left at 7:30, according to the log.”

“Any chance that wasn’t planned? Saturday was apparently date night.” Dean said but Gabe just shook his head.

“Yeah, no. Amby was real good about that, she never left a shift early, not even date night, unless she was tired or there was an emergency. If she was clear on the NICU she would always head down to the ER to help with the laying of hands,” Gabriel said it with a sad little smile and Dean just nodded.

“Gabriel, do you remember her talking at all about where she was meeting Jacie last night? “ Castiel asked, coming away from the wall to sit next to his brother.

“I wish she had, but no. It could have been anywhere, really. Sometimes she gets stuck here late, so I know that wherever they would have chosen, it would have been somewhere that stayed open late. I know they were pretty fond of the Starlight District.”

“Alright. You want to page one of the girls from the cafeteria?” Dean asked and Gabriel stood up to pull out his pager.

“You want both of them?”

“Not right now,” Castiel said.

“It’s better in these cases to take statements separately. Easier to tell when someone is lying that way. Or covering for someone else,” Dean explained and Gabriel nodded before popping a lollipop in his mouth.

“I have Becky Rosen coming to you first,” Gabe said around the cherry colored treat. “She is a little dramatic, and over the top, but she is very sweet and excellent at her job. One of the best nurses we have.”

“It’s okay dude, you don’t need to sell her on us, so long as she is honest, we’re all good,” Dean said, amused.

A few minutes later a soft knock came at the door and Gabriel went over to lead Ms. Becky Rosen inside. She was a small slip of a girl, with dirty blonde hair and tear ravaged eyes. When her eyes fell on Dean and Castiel, each holding their badges out in case she wanted to inspect them first before talking, the tears began to flow freely.

“Oh Dr. Gabriel!” she cried, nose red and sniffling, “This is just the most awful thing ever.”

“I know, Becky. But I need you to calm down and and talk to the detectives for me, okay? This is Detective Dean Winchester, and his partner Castiel.”

She nodded and pulled some tissues out of the pocket of her scrubs to wipe at her eyes. “Okay. Okay, I can do that.”

“Thank you, Ms. Rosen,” Dean said, flashing her a disarming smile. He cupped her elbow and led her over to the sofa before settling himself back on the table across from her. “I’m going to record this conversation, if that’s okay with you?” Dean asked and was rewarded with a small nod.

“Now, Ms. Rosen-”

“Becky, please. Ms. just reminds me of my mother. She’s always telling me, if you keep chatting away at everyone Becky, you’ll always be a Ms. instead of a Mrs. Boys don’t like motor mouths. I should stand up to her, but I don’t.”

Dean met Castiel’s gaze for a moment and he had to bite back a laugh at the utterly lost look on his partner's face, though Gabriel just looked fond.

“Alrighty, Becky it is. Becky, can you walk me through your day with Ambriel?”

“Yes. I was working the floor with her, so I saw most of the same patients. I was bouncing between her's and our other paternity healer, Mastema. We had this one patient, little Kylie. She came to us with stage 4 neuroblastoma. It took a few healing sessions to get her back to stable. Amby had given her the last treatment Saturday. It took a lot out of her. After that she stuck mostly with fever reducing, regulating blood pressures, until she got a headache.”

Dean cocked his head at that, but Castiel answered.

“When we overtax ourselves with healing it can lead to what you humans refer to as a migraine.”

“Huh. I never knew that,” Dean said and Castiel quirked a lip up at him. Dean turned his attention back to Becky. “So, she over extended. Is that why she left early?”

“I’m not sure. I knew she and Jacie had plans to meet at some dance club in the SD. Some bond-mates only club, only one on 5th. I’m not sure what it’s called,” Becky said, and she seemed to have a much better handle on herself than she had when she had first walked into the door.

Dean looked at Gabriel and Castiel. “They have those, mates only clubs?”

Castiel shrugged but Gabe nodded.

“Yes. I mean, it’s not like it’s a written rule, it’s just something that kind of happens. It’s no different than the gay clubs they have in the district. No one actually says straight people can’t hang at The Phoenix or Babylon, but when you walk in, you know there won’t be many there. It’s the same for mate clubs,” Gabriel said, leaning back against the couch cushions.

“Okay, so are we talking mates only like strictly angel/human or mates in general, of all supernatural species that do that kind of thing?” Dean asked Becky.

“I don’t know. I know they have both. My cousin Deb is married to a werewolf and they hang out at the Half-Moon in the SD all the time. They took me there once and I saw vampire and human couples,  werewolf and vampire couple, human and faires. There could have been angel and humans but unless an angel has their wings out or is actively healing someone, then you wouldn’t really know. But The Half-Moon isn’t on 5th, and I know that is where they were headed.”

“Becky,” Castiel cut in, “Do you know what time she was supposed to meet? Did she mention that she was going to go home first?”

“No. I mean, no she didn’t mention going home first, they were supposed to meet at 9pm. I know, because she brought her change of clothes to the hospital and her make-up bag. But she got a phone call or something, and after she got off the phone, she said her headache was worse and that she was going to go home and sleep for a bit before she met up with Jacie.”

Interesting. Dean wondered if Ambriel was lured home by whoever was on the phone, or if she really did just have a headache she wanted to sleep off. Dean could tell by the look on Castiel’s face that he was wondering the same thing.

“Okay, Becky. Can you tell me if you saw anyone you didn’t recognize hanging around Saturday? Anyone you didn’t know talking to Ambriel?” Dean watched as Becky’s eyebrows furrowed in concentration before she shook her head.

“No. Only authorized personnel and immediate family members of the patients are allowed in the NICU. Any visitors need to be buzzed in and sign a log and given a visitor's pass. Even the parents.”

“Alright. Thank you for your time, Becky. I’m going to give you my card. If you can think of anything else at all, don’t hesitate to call me or my partner.”

Dean and Castiel both shook Becky’s hand before she left before giving Gabriel the all clear to page the next interview. Dean watched as Castiel pulled out his cell phone. Dean was stopped from asking a question when Cas held up his finger in the wait gesture, phone at his ear now.

“Bass?  While your tracking down those products I also need to find out all of the dance clubs on 5th in the Starlight District. Actually, I want the names of all the clubs and whatever info you can get on what type they are, and shoot them to me, with all the clubs on 5th at the top of the list,” Dean watched as Castiel rolled his eyes as he listened to whatever Aaron said on the other end of the line. “No, I don’t care what time it is, when you have the info, I want it,” Castiel leveled Dean with a stare. “Aaron says hi,” he deadpanned and Dean couldn’t help the snort of laughter that bubbled up.

“What? What am I missing?” Gabriel asked, looking happy with a distraction from the day's events.

“Nothing.”

“Castiel has it out for a rookie with a crush on me,” Dean answered to Cas’ chargrin.

“I do not have it out for him. I expect him to do the job just as any officer in his position.”

“Riiiight. I mean, that is totally how you handled Alfie too, when he first joined the force.”

“Dean, that was different”

“Oh, pray tell? How exactly was that different?” Dean teased as Castiel’s ire rose.

“I hate you,” he fumed and Dean laughed.

The momentary moment of levity ended when another knock sounded at the waiting room door. Again, Gabriel greeted the witness at the door before introducing her to them.

Mastema was...regal was the only word that came to mind. Her skin was like caramel, and flawless. Her dark corkscrew curls were pulled back in a shining ponytail. Wide brown eyes that took everything in studied Dean as though he were an interesting specimen under a microscope. Her voice reminded Dean of Balthazar’s, rich and cultured, but kind.

She didn’t tell them much more than what they had already heard, except she had been close enough to Ambriel at the time of the late phone call she received, to hear her end of the conversation.

“It sounded like she knew who she was talking to. I heard her say ‘thank you for calling’ then she paused, and then she said ‘ I’ll be home for a little while.’ After that she hung up the phone and said she was leaving. She didn’t seem overly worried, or else I would have inquired. She just seemed tired and I knew she had plans with her mate that she was looking forward to.”

They thanked her for the information, and Gabe called O.R. seven to find out whether or not Kevin was going to be done anytime soon.

Dean felt his phone beep in his pocket. He had to bite his cheek when he saw who the message was from. “Um, Aaron just sent me Rowena’s home address,” Dean looked up to see Castiel glowering and when he spoke, his voice was a low growl.

“I thought you had Charlie on that?”

“I did, but he went to do his club search down in cyber crimes. Better equipment. He told her he would pass on the message.”

Gabriel’s snickering drew both of their attention. “Who knew you were so possessive, brother?”

Castiel huffed in annoyance.”I am not possessive.”

“It’s okay, babe, I like it,” Dean winked and Castiel flipped him off in return.

“Man, you guys are just a couple of sweetie pies, aren’t you?”

“Yes, we’re sugar,” Castiel snarked.

“Well, it looks like Kevin is going to be at least another hour or so.”

“Gabriel, please let Kevin know we will see him at the house later, unless something comes up. Dean? Let’s go.”

Dean exchanged amused looks with Gabriel before following his partner out the door.

  



	22. Chapter 22

Castiel could feel the humor rolling off of Dean and it was irritating him. It wasn’t like he didn’t know he was being ridiculous. There was absolutely no logical reason for him to be so bothered by Aaron’s little crush on Dean. He couldn’t help it, for some reason it was getting under his skin like an infected splinter. He wondered if it had anything to do with being so close to fully bonded. Maybe his instincts were just making him extra...clingy. Though he didn’t feel clingy. In fact, Dean’s sense of humor about the whole thing didn’t make him want to hug the man, instead he wanted to punch his smug face. Castiel blew out a breath and turned when he heard Dean chuckling behind him.

“What are you guffawing about?” Castiel said crossly as he waited next to the car, which seemed to make Dean laugh more.

“Who-who the hell even says guffawing?” Dean laughed harder and Castiel stepped into his space, pushing him back against the Impala roughly.

“I don’t appreciate my feelings being laughed at, Dean. You should show me, some respect.” Cas could see the moment that Dean realized he was serious, and contriteness swam in his eyes.

Dean reached out to take Castiel’s hands. His fingers pried open the fists that Castiel hadn’t been aware that he had made. “I’m sorry. I was just teasing. I really didn’t think it was bothering you that much, I thought we were joking about it.”

Dean’s sincerity took the wind out of Cas’ sails and he sighed. ‘I know. It’s not your fault. I know he’s no threat, and I know he is a good cop. He’s hardworking, eager to please, and when it comes to us, harmless. I think it might be some kind of angel mating instinct. I feel...keyed up. On the edge.”

“And you think that will go away once we’ve had the hot, sweaty sex?” Dean leered.

Castiel rolled his eyes. “Don’t hurt yourself trying to make our bonding sound romantic or anything. But yes, essentially. I will ask Hael at dinner. We have to tell her anyway and she won’t annoy me like Gabriel would if I asked him.”

Dean laughed and leaned in to steal a soft kiss. It was quick and Cas found himself chasing Dean’s lips for more. He blocked Dean against the door and licked into the man’s mouth. Dean parted his lips for him eagerly and for a moment they indulged. The spicy taste of Dean was addicting and as their tongues undulated against each other Cas once again, wished they could be in home, in bed, exploring each other. When he forced himself to pull back, Dean rested his forehead against Castiel’s and they both were breathing a little harder.

“I can’t wait for this to be over,” Dean whispered. “ It’s like, I finally have you, but I can’t _have_ you, and it’s driving me nuts.”

“It’s very frustrating,” Castiel agreed, making Dean laugh again, softly.

“Alright, well, we have a dance instructor to see, so let’s see what we can shake out of this Rowena chick.”

Rowena MacLeod lived in a two storey brownstone on the edge of town. Her front stoop had deep clay pots with what Castiel recognized as mint, basil, lavender and lemon balm. Cas wondered if they were for tea.

Before they could even ring the bell, the front door opened revealing a lithe, attractive woman in what looked to be her late thirties, with a yard of crimson curls and a smile wicked as sin. Her eyes had a sultry, smokey effect going on that Castiel had seen Hael utilize on special occasions. Ms. MacLeod was wearing a black unitard and her red painted toe nails were bare.

“Well, look at you,” she said in lieu of a greeting. “Aren’t you two something special?” her voice had a pleasing lilt that rolled like the hills of Scotland.

“Ms. Macleod, we have an urgent matter to speak with you about. Perhaps we could do it inside so as not to alarm the neighbors?” Castiel said firmly and a dark red brow winged up at him.

“I don’t see why not,” Rowena replied with a tinkling laugh. “It’s not everyday I get to entertain such a special couple. Angel and human mates. True mates, at that,” she said, turning back towards her doorway. Castiel exchanged a guarded look with Dean.

“Come along, dears,” Rowena said over her shoulders, “I just made a fresh batch of mint tea.”

“Uh, how did you know we were true mates?” Dean asked, head swiveling around the spacious living room. “You psychic or something?”

They followed Rowena down a hall, in through a bright,sunny kitchen done in yellow and green. She took them through a back door that led to a pretty little wrought iron veranda. A table was already set with a pitcher of iced tea, and three tall glasses with ice and sprigs of mint.

“Please, sit.”

Castiel could feel that Dean was leery but Cas’ curiosity had him sitting down.

"Expecting someone?” Dean asked, tone dust dry.

“I knew I’d have visitors today, but I didn’t realize how special until I opened the door,” Rowena said, lifting delicate looking hands to pour the iced tea.

“You didn’t answer my question. Are you a psychic?” Dean asked again, and Castiel studied their host as they waited for an answer.

“Have you met many psychics, then, detective? She asked and Dean laughed, pointing a finger at her.

“That’s good. Asking me if I believe in psychics while calling me detective, which I most definitely never said.”

“We’ve met psychics before, but…” Castiel tilted his head, staring at the woman in front of him, “That’s not what you are.”

Rowena glanced over at Dean. “Your angel is right. I’m not a psychic. I’m a witch.”

Dean smirked at this. “Okay, so are you a good witch or a bad witch?” Castiel bit back a grin at the question. His Dean had a love/hate relationship with witches, which leaned decidedly towards hate.

Rowena laughed, a musical sound. “It depends on the day, lads. I can tell you that I haven’t dropped any houses on anyone recently.”

“I should certainly hope not, that would be an awful thing to do,” Castiel said gravely, confused by the overwhelming feeling of love and affection shooting at him from Dean. “So you knew we were coming, but you don’t know why?” Castiel asked, trying to gauge her reaction, but Rowena’s expression remained pleasantly serene.

Rowena lifted her glass to her lips, prompting Castiel to take a sip. It was bright and refreshing and not too sweet. He might have ask her how she brews the tea.

“I tear about two handfuls of fresh mint leaves and put them in a full tea kettle and boil it, then let it steep for, oh, about 5 minutes. Then I pour it into a pitcher like this one, using a strainer to catch the leaves.

Castiel nodded, and sheepishly jotted the instructions down in his notebook. He felt Dean eyes on him and lifted his own meet them.

“Really, Cas?”

“Cas, is that your name?” Rowena asked and Dean snorted.

“What? Did your spirit guides not tell you that?”

“I get visions sometimes, when I meditate. I saw the two of you-” Rowena looked at Dean,” you had a badge, Detective…?”

“Winchester.”

“Winchester,” she nodded before turning her attention to Castiel. “I assumed you were his partner. It wasn’t until I opened the door that I realized what you really were,” her wide eyes flashed with something that almost resembled awe. “Your wings are beautiful.”

“Hey!” Dean’s tone held a possessive warning.

“Oh, calm down, Freckles. I didn’t mean anything by it, certainly not in a sexual way. I just see things, others don’t, that’s all,” she said before sipping at her tea.

Castiel could still feel the irritation coming off of Dean, so he placed a soothing hand on his knee. “Ms. Macleod, I’m going to record this interview, okay?” Castiel said, fingering the little recorder at the lapel of his borrowed suit jacket. The self-proclaimed witch waved her hand in assent and Castiel decided he would be blunt, and not ease into it. He side-eyed Dean and knew they were on the same page.

Castiel turned on the recorder and began. “Castiel and Detective Dean Winchester in interview with Ms. Rowena Macleod regarding case number 05-7434. Ms. MacLeod, I regret to inform you that your employee Jacie Hudgens was murdered Saturday night.”

There was a look of pure unadulterated shock, Rowena’s peaches and cream complexion going even paler, if that were possible, so that she resembled a ghost. Castiel caught Dean’s eye and his partner's little nod. That had been genuine shock.

“H-how?” Rowena’s voice trembled and tears began to run silently down her face. She had gone from playfully sassy to devastated in mere seconds.

“I’m sorry,” Castiel said, “but we’re not at liberty to say. Can you tell us your whereabouts on the night in question?”

“Oh my god. Oh my god, this just can’t be. Who would...Ambriel! Then this means Ambriel is gone too?” a fresh onslaught of tears began in earnest and Castiel looked over at Dean helplessly. Damsels in distress were definitely more of Dean’s forte than his own. Castiel sat back and handed the riegns over to his partner.

“Rowena,” Dean said gently, reaching out a hand to put over her own. “ I know this is hard but I really need you to tell us where you were Saturday night.”

Rowena’s eyes were glazed. “Am I a suspect? I c-could never. No, you know what? It’s okay. You’re asking for them. You need to ask so you can move on and help them.”

“Yes ma’am. Can you tell us where you were?” Dean asked again, tone still even and calm.

Rowena took a ragged breath. “Yes. My son, Fergus and I...we have recently reconnected. We didn’t speak for many years. We weren’t a fan of a number of each other’s choices for many years. But things have been going well. We had dinner Saturday night at _42 North_ , this little italian place, then we went to the ballet.”

Fergus. _Fergus._ Why was that name so familiar? Castiel cocked his head, wracking his brain.

“I can give you his number if you need to speak with him. Fergus Crowley, 774-”

“Fergus Crowley is your son?” Castiel and Dean burst out in unison, startling Rowena enough that she jumped a little in her seat.

“Yes, you know him?”

“Do we know the Commissioner of Crossroads? Considering he is our boss’s boss, yes. We definitely do know Fergus Crowley,” Dean said, a slight edge to his voice. Castiel groaned internally, wondering how this was going to shake out. All he knew was that he didn’t want him or Dean railroaded just for doing their jobs.

“You need not worry, my son is very fair,” Rowena said, with a bit of fire back in her voice.

“Yes he is,” Castiel agreed. “Which is why I am sure he would want us to treat you like any other person of interest in this case. Can you tell us what time you arrived home after your evening with your son?”

“Well, after the ballet we went over to _Fishbones_ for a drink and to chat about the new man he is seeing but won’t let me meet,” she sounded a little disgruntled and Castiel noticed Dean’s ears pick up at that little piece of gossip. “By the time we left there, it was nearly 12:30 A.M. It was about five after one by the time I got back here.”

“Do you know where Jacie planned on meeting Ambriel on Saturday?” Dean asked and Rowena nodded. “Yes, some place called Birds of a Feather. I’m not sure where it’s located but I know that it caters to couples like you. Bondmates and those intended to bond.”

Rowena took another sip of tea and it seemed to be settling her nerves. “Has there been any new recent additions to any of Jacie’s dance classes? New students, parents?” Castiel inquired and Rowena thought for a moment.

“No. Not in her class. I had a new student join my advanced jazz class, but Jacie still has the same students since the beginning of the year. She works with the younger children, ages 5 to 11. Or worked. Oh god,” Rowena seemed to lose a little of her calm, “What do I tell the children? How do I explain it?”

Castiel didn’t really have an answer for her. Now that next of kin had been notified it wouldn’t be long before the reporters had it. They would no doubt have their own spin on what happened.

Dean leaned forward across the table. “Rowena, I need you to try and think. Have you seen anyone unusual near your dance studio in the past few weeks? Had any weird phone calls? Anyone that alerted your spidey-senses?” That caused a ghost of a smile to appear on her tear stained face.

“No, there’s been no one. Although…”

“Although what?” Castiel prompted.

“Well, there was this black van a few weeks ago. I noticed it in the parking lot, from inside the studio. At first I thought someone was coming to pick up one of the children, maybe a relative or something as I didn’t recognize the vehicle. But then it just pulled out and left. I remember thinking it was odd at the time, but it was probably just someone turning around or lost.”

Castiel exchanged a meaningful look with Dean. That was a hit. Both Elsie Jane and Rowena had noticed a black van. Of course, there were countless people with black vans in the city alone, but at least it was a start.

Castiel and Dean offered their condolences once more and thanked Rowena for her time.

“You may hear from us again, but if you think of anything before you do, please give us a call, okay?” Dean handed her a card with both of their names and numbers on them.

“Of course, detective. And be safe, both of you.”

Castiel knew it was unintentional, but those words almost made him nervous. He sighed as he settled into the passenger seat of the Impala. He turned to Dean.

“Black van.”

“Yep. There’s only thousands of those around,” Dean snarked. “We need to update the murder board, and what the fuck, man? Crowley’s fucking mom? How is that even possible? She doesn’t look a day over 40! Fucking witches.”

“At least she appears to be truthful. That was genuine shock when you broke the news to her,” Castiel said, turning in his seat to face Dean better.

Dean nodded. “Yeah, she’d have to be an incredible actress to have pulled off that reaction. It was like I could see the blood drain from her face when she heard the news,” Dean looked down at his watch. “Alright, so it’s 1:30. I need to eat something, my stomach feels like it’s gnawing on itself.”

“There’s a pleasant image.”

“Well, sweetheart, not everyone can get by on two hours of sleep and a granola bar,” Dean teased and Castiel laughed. “How about we head over to the roadhouse?”

Castiel thought about it, then shook his head no. “No, if we’re having dinner with Hael and Kevin, we should actually show up hungry. You know how much my sister loves to make casseroles, she will be perturbed if we don’t eat enough. How about we got through a Dunkin’s drive thru and grab some coffee and breakfast sandwiches? "

“Cause breakfast sandwiches are for breakfast, Cas, “ Dean said, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. He rolled his eyes affectionately.

“Then get it with no egg. I like the sausage and cheese on english muffins. They are like...breakfast cheeseburgers.”

Dean grinned. “Look at you, all logical and stuff. I should text Sam, tell him not to expect us for dinner.”

Castiel nodded, then took out his phone to call his voicemail. 3 new messages. The first was from Connor Pike, saying that he and Haley Collins could meet with them at their earliest convenience. Castiel assumed he must have seen the news by now because Connor sounded like he was crying as he left the message. The second message was from Aaron, letting Castiel know that there was one stand out customer at Gadreel’s Day Spa who bought the expensive body wash and shampoo. Multiple bottles. The third message was from Hael, asking them to please pick up a bottle of Sean Miner to go with the lasagna she was making for dinner.

“Lasagna tonight.”

“Sweet,” Dean gave a triumphant fist pump.

“We need to bring wine,” Castiel added and Dean made a face. “Relax, no one said you couldn’t bring beer too. Anyway, that’s not all. Connor Pike called, all we have to do is call him back and he and Haley will make sure they’re home so we can come speak with them.”

“They live together?”

“Roommates, apparently. And your boy Aaron-”

“He’s not my boy, Cas.” Dean rolled his eyes but Castiel continued on as if he wasn’t speaking.

“Aaron said that there was one person who really stood out at Gadreel’s Day Spa. He apparently spent cash on both of the products found on Jacie’s skin and hair.”

Dean’s brow furrowed. “But what made him stand out? He can’t be the only person to have paid cash for those products in the past few months.”

“No, he’s not. However, he is the only one to spend cash on five bottles each of the body wash and shampoo,” Castiel answered, letting that sink in.

“Dude, that’s like over 1200 dollars!”

Castiel nodded. “Hence the big impression. Aaron said he already asked, and the salon tech that helped the guy agreed to come in and work with a sketch artist. She’ll be coming in to meet with Turner tomorrow at 9am. But for now, the description she gave him was about 5’9, brown hair, light blue eyes. The tech told him she remembered the eyes because he looked like he was on something at the time.”

“That’s great, it would be nice to get a face on this guy so we can run it through the system. Alright, so I say we call Connor Pike to see if we can’t see him and Haley in like, a half hour, forty minutes?”

Castiel nodded. “Sounds like a plan,” he said before he called back Connor.

“You know, I am exhausted,” Dean said after Castiel had confirmed with Connor to meet at his apartment at 2pm. “But at least I feel like we’re getting somewhere.”

Castiel agreed, he felt the same way. He just hoped their good luck would last so they could get this guy quickly, before someone else was hurt.

  


                                                                  


	23. Chapter 23

Connor and Haley lived in a one bedroom studio apartment in the Bohemian part of town. Dean wondered if they lived in a one bedroom because they were a couple, or if it was all that they could afford.  The sidewalk was littered with people selling their wares, everything from homemade jewelry, to fruits and vegetables. It was an area that Dean’s dad would have called “earthy crunchy”.

The only parking was on street, which Dean hated. It was like asking for Baby to get hit or scratched. Plus, they had to park two blocks away because it was midday and everyone was out on their lunch breaks or between classes.

Bonus, however, was that he took the opportunity to reach out and lace his fingers with Cas’. They could afford to be a couple enjoying the sun and fresh scent of strawberries for two blocks. They passed a seller who had paintings of the New York skyline and the Brooklyn Bridge. Dean noticed Castiel’s eyes drawn to an oil painting of purple pansies with a single bumblebee drinking the flower's nectar. Dean approached the kind-faced woman behind the makeshift counter, which was really just a few crates stacked, covered by a flowered plastic table cloth. On it sat a lock box and a mason jar filled with ones and quarters for change.

“Dean,” Castiel tugged on his arm as Dean waited to get the woman’s attention. “What are you doing?”

“Nothing, this’ll just take a sec,” Dean said, then turned on his charming smile when the woman came to greet him. “Hi there. I was wondering how much for the bumblebee picture?” Out of the corner of his eye, Dean saw the shy, pleased smile that stole across Castiel’s face. The woman seemed to see it too, because her motherly features softened even more.

“I can let it go for twenty.”

“Sold. Any chance you can hang onto it for another hour?” Dean asked, pulling a twenty from his wallet for her and handing it over. “We have a meeting, but will have to pass back by here.”

“No problem at all, love, I’ll have it bagged up and waiting for you.”

“Dean, you didn’t have to do that,” Castiel said as the continued down the block to Connor and Haley’s apartment.

“Hey, who says it for you. Maybe I suddenly developed a fascination for bees,” Dean teased and Castiel laughed, bumping his shoulder into Dean’s playfully. But as they got closer to the apartment, the mood shifted back to professional.

Connor and Haley lived on the first floor of their apartment building and there was a strong scent of weed and maple syrup when they walked inside of the building. Dean couldn’t help but wonder if the maple syrup was in direct result of the weed. Did someone get stoned and then decide on waffles for dinner?

The young woman who opened the door looked like she hadn’t slept in a week. Dean introduced himself and Cas, and gave a gentle reminder that he would be recording the conversation.

Haley nodded and sniffled into the overlong sleeves of a bulky green sweater. “Please, come sit down. Can I get you a drink?” she asked and even though Dean didn’t want anything to drink, he could tell the task would help the girl settle.

“Just water would be great, thanks,” he said kindly and Cas nodded in agreement when ravaged grey eyes fell on him as well.

Haley pulled her dark blonde hair up into what Dean knew, thanks to Charlie, was a scrunchie and walked into the kitchen. For a studio, it was a fairly large apartment, a small half wall separated the living room/sleeping area from the kitchen. Dean watched as Haley pulled four glasses out of the cabinet and filled them with crushed ice from a bag in the freezer. From the fridge she pulled a clear pitcher of water with lemon wedges inside of it. Dean sucked in his cheeks instinctively. He hated lemon in his water, but he appreciated the aesthetic. He could hear the shower running and assumed it had to be Connor.

As though reading his mind, Haley said apologetically, “Connor should be right out, I’m sorry. He went for a run to clear his mind before you got here and had a unpleasant encounter with a pile of mulch,” she said with a small smile and Dean winced in sympathy.

Haley brought the glasses out on an old tv tray and placed them on a scarred coffee table. Dean and Castiel each took one and sat down on the worn but comfortably broken in plaid futon. Haley sat across from them on a navy loveseat and began to play with her hands.

“Haley, we can get started without Connor if you’d like,” Castiel said gently, but she was saved from answering when the bathroom door popped open, steam billowing behind a young man in a Avengers tee shirt and a pair of grey sweatpants. He looked like he didn’t even take time to dry his his hair, the ginger curls dripping water into his pale face.

“I’m sorry guys, I thought I would be done before you got here.”

Dean waved away his apology, and gestured to him to sit with Haley. “Connor, just so you are aware, this conversation is being recorded.”

Connor nodded, chewing at his lip. “Whatever you gotta do man, this is just so surreal.”

Dean minutely inclined his head in Cas’ direction and the angel picked up the ball.

“Can you tell us how long you have known Jacie?”

“Jacie and I met at college, we were roommates at Juilliard. She met Connor through me, he’s my boyfriend. He is studying law at NYU,” Haley smiled proudly at her boyfriend and he blushed. “I joined the local ballet company but Jacie went the teaching route, but we stayed close.”

“How often would you say that you saw each other?” Castiel leaned forward to pick up his lemon water as he waited for an answer.

“Usually once or twice a month,” Connor said, putting a comforting arm around Haley’s shoulders, as she had started to tear up again.

“I’m sorry I keep crying. I just can’t believe this is happening. And poor Ambriel. Like, you hear the stories about bondmates and it sounds so romantic. And then-” her breath hiccupped and Dean’s own chest felt tight, “and them something like this happens and it’s just tragic. It’s not romantic at all.”

Dean could feel Castiel tensing up next to him, could feel how he moved away, just a little bit. Dean wondered if he was even aware that he had done so.

“I’m sorry,” Castiel said, his low voice almost a growl. “I know this must be difficult. You were going to tell me how often you saw Jacie and Ambriel?”

Haley’s wiped at her eyes and nodded, trying to regain composure. “Yes, um, usually twice a month, right Connor?”

Connor nodded. “Yeah, they had this thing, every Saturday was date night,” he said and Dean watched Castiel take in the information as if it were the first time he was hearing it. “But every other Saturday we would meet up with them, like a double date kind of thing. We’d go to clubs, or just dinner and bowling. In the summer we did a lot of picnics on the beach,” Connor’s voice broke a little on the end.

“Were you supposed to meet with them this Saturday?” Castiel asked, looking from Connor to Haley and the both shook their heads no.

“No. We’re supposed to go see Dave Matthews Band with them next week, but…” Dean noticed she had slipped back into present tense, like people were ought to do when dealing with a sudden death. “This week was their alone night. They were going to Birds of a Feather, the last time i talked to them. It’s kind of exclusive. It’s a mates only club. I mean, you can get in as long as you're 21, but you feel kind of…” she trailed off.

“Out of place,” Connor finished for her. “Everyone is really nice, but it’s super intense in there. A lot of staring and eye sex, you know? Like, couples just kind of making out or just looking at each other, almost like they’re having conversations without words. Regular couples like us...it gets a little intimidating. Almost  like we are intruding.”

“Can you tell me the last time you spoke with either of them?” Castiel asked and Haley nodded.

“Yeah, I talked to Jacie Saturday afternoon. She said she was leaving work around 6. Said she had a gift she had made for Ambriel that she needed to pick up and that they were supposed to meet at the club around 8pm.”

Dean’s ears perked up at gift and he jumped in.

“Did she tell you what the gift was? Where she was picking it up?” If Haley knew, this could be one of the last people to have spoken to Jacie alive. Or it could have been whoever killed her in the first place.

“She wouldn’t tell any of us. She just said it was a surprise and that she had been waiting to give it to Ambriel.” Haley said.

“And she didn’t say anything at all, like who it was that made the gift? What store it was from?” Dean pressed, but Haley shook her head no. A glance at Connor had him saying no too.

“All she said was she was picking up the gift, and she couldn’t wait for us all to see it. If I were to guess, I am thinking maybe jewelry. She and Ambriel were engaged, but they hadn’t gotten rings yet.”

Dean looked at Castiel and he nodded, quickly jotting something down. Dean had a feeling that Aaron would be getting tagged to check out the jewelry stores in the area.

Castiel cleared his throat, getting the couples attention, “Can you tell me your own whereabouts on the night in question?”

Connor’s eyes widened in shock but Haley seemed so out of it, that taking offense to the question didn’t seem to be on her radar. Instead she just answered mechanically. “Yeah, we went to _Alley Kat Lanes_ , bowled a few games, then we hit the _Loralei_ for a few drinks before coming home.”

Dean knew it was time to wrap things up. Haley had held it together fairly well but Dean could see she was beginning to unravel, and by the looks Connor was shooting his way, he knew it too. Dean felt for the guy. He’d lost his friends too, but being a rock for his girlfriend seemed to be his priority. Dean could respect that.

Castiel stood up first and Dean followed, shaking hands with the young couple before them. “Thank you for speaking with us, we are very sorry for your loss. If you think of anything else over the next couple of days, please don’t hesitate to call,” Castiel handed Connor his card. “Sometimes we remember little details after the shock has worn off.”

Dean snapped his fingers before he reached the door behind Cas. “One more thing. The last few times you hung out with Jacie and Ambriel, did either of you notice a black van?”

Haley leaned heavily against Connor, and Dean felt bad for even asking. She looked ready to drop. “Not me, sweetie?” she turned her face towards Connor but he just shook his head. “No, I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay, thank you for your time.”

 

Dean followed Castiel out the door, back into the perfume of weed and maple and took a deep breath. It was hard to breath in the cloud of someone’s grief. Dean went to reach for Cas’ hand, but the angel sidestepped him. Castiel must have felt the intense pang of hurt that hit Dean at the action because he turned apologetic blue eyes on him; pleading without words for space.

The walk back to the painting vendor was silent and when Dean got the bag from the woman from earlier, he handed it to Cas without words. The silence extended as they got in the car and headed back to the precinct. Dean almost chuckled out loud at the irony; he’d found it heavy inside of Connor and Haley’s apartment. But it was nothing compared to the stifling emotions swirling between Dean and Cas right now. Dean squared his shoulders. He shouldn’t be surprised. He knew this was coming. Castiel had warned him, had told him that there would be moments when Castiel would push Dean away. But he had also told Dean not to let him, and damned if he was going to. He would stay cool and calm. He _would_ control his emotions. Dean would bury any hurt and treat this like the temper tantrum he likened it to. And then, when Castiel saw that he was unruffled, that he _wasn’t_ going anywhere, no matter what, he would finally get it. Dean would make Cas see that their love was a gift, despite how cruel and uncertain the future could be.


	24. Chapter 24

Castiel laid his head back against the seat an allowed his eyes to close for the few precious minutes it would take to get back to the precinct. He felt a nauseating mix of angry, hurt, sad and afraid. Anger at this case, anger at himself for doing to Dean what he had warned him about. Rationally, he knew pulling away was not the answer. It made no sense to do so, it wouldn’t change anything. Together or apart, he and Dean were true mates. Being a martyr and distancing himself, in reality, did nothing. He knew all of this. But damned if his heart wasn’t petrified.  The idea of losing Dean. Of laying down in utter heartbreak waiting to die, as Ambriel had done, turned his blood to ice. He couldn’t even imagine it. Haley was right, it wasn’t romantic. Because no matter what, whichever one of them was left behind, the other was destined to die of a broken heart.

Castiel was surprised when the thickness of his emotions seemed to lighten a little bit. It was almost like just feeling himself again, alone. At first, he panicked. He sat up abruptly, gasping. _Dean._ Where was their connection? Why couldn’t he feel it? Castiel’s head whipped jerkily to the left, staring in horror at Dean’s profile. His breathing grew rapid and his fingers flexed open and closed until something cool slid across his temple and smoothing down his neck. It was like being doused with a soothing caress. He knew immediately it was Dean. It was as though he were running a hand down his back with a soft “shhh”, only in his mind. Wave after wave of calm washed over him, the faint words _I’m still here_ echoing over and over, putting a bandaid over the ache he had felt moments before.

Castiel jumped in his seat when he felt his phone buzz. He took it out and swiped at the messages.

“The lieutenant wants us for a briefing at four," Castiel said, voice a little shaky, "Crowley will be in attendance,” Castiel said and Dean snorted.

“No surprise there.”

“Aaron says he has completed the list of all the clubs in the Starlight District and shot the file to both of our emails.” Cas said, not looking up from his phone, feeling a little embarrassed at the anxiety attack he had just had.

“Did you tell him to get started on a search of the Jewelry stores in Crossroads? Tell him to take pictures of Jacie and see if any of the retailers know who she was.”

Castiel sent Aaron a text relaying Dean’s instructions and was granted an immediate _Yes, sir_ in reply.

“Kid’s not doing too badly,” Dean said kindly, but Cas just grunted in response. He really needed to talk to Hael about this hyped up jealousy thing. He knew that the rookie was in no way any competition for him, It wasn’t conceit, it was just that he knew how irrevocably in love Dean was in with him. He’d felt it, more, he felt the same. So this urge to smite the poor young officer everytime his smile lingered on Dean a little too long was ridiculous. Cas ran a frustrated hand through his hair and sighed. Castiel was angry at himself. He was being, as he’d heard Dean say many times before, a little bitch. Practically seething on the inside at the crazy idea of Aaron and Dean, yet on the outside, being cold and distant. He side eyed Dean again as they pulled into the parking lot of the precinct. His partner was a gorgeous mask of stoicism. Dean appeared calm and relaxed, and the afternoon sun dancing across his freckles was such an exquisite sight, Cas actually had butterflies.

When they parked Dean pulled on Cas’ arm to stop him from getting out of the car. Castiel watched as Dean collected himself, biting his bottom lip and looking down. But then, Dean lifted his head and stared Cas right in the eyes.

“I’m going to back off a bit, because I know that’s what you need right now. But if you think that this means you have in any way successfully pushed me away, you’re wrong. All it means is that I recognize that you need to work this out on your own, and in the end, you’ll come to me.”

It wasn’t said as some cocky, flirtatious remark. Dean merely said it as fact.

“I don’t deserve you.”

“Yes you do. We deserve each other. You’ll see.” With that Dean slipped out of the car. Cas needed a minute to get his emotions under control before following Dean out of the car. He followed behind shortly and found comfort in the sounds of the precinct as the walked through the bullpen. The din of voices, the clacking of the computer keys, and that ever present smell of burnt coffee. As they walked by, the lieutenant poked his head out of his office.

“Castiel! Winchester! Your office, twenty minutes.”

“Yes, sir,” Castiel called back while Dean just saluted. Dean had his phone out as they walked into the office. Dean sat on the edge of his desk and Castiel watched his hands fly over the buttons on his phone.

“Who are you texting?” Castiel couldn't help but ask.

“Bass. Wanna know if he got anywhere with the jewelry stores before we gotta meet Bobby and Crowley.” Dean looked up at the end and Castiel nodded. He couldn’t help but notice Dean had switched from saying Aaron, to using his last name. He wondered if Dean was purposely distancing himself from the familiarity of first names, because he could sense Cas’ strong feelings on the rookie. It _was_ something Dean would do, no one paid more attention to Castiel’s moods than Dean, of course he would know how he was feeling. Cas narrowed his eyes, thinking that if this is what it felt like to be so open and bare all the time, then Dean deserved a medal for putting up with it so stoically.

Castiel watched as Dean tossed his phone on his desk before moving to the board. He added _black van_ and _Birds of a Feather_ in sharpie. When his phone buzzed on the desk, Dean gave him the go ahead for him to check it as he wrote _Gadreel’s Day Spa._

Castiel picked up the phone, noting that Dean had changed his screensaver. Someone had snapped a picture of them at some point Saturday night, if this picture of himself and Dean cuddled in the chair was anything to go by. Cas is facing the television, his head cocked in question, brows furrowed, and Dean was staring at him.. like he had the answer to all of the questions in the universe.

“What’d he say?” Dean’s voice had him jerking his head, almost guiltily, as if he wasn’t supposed to see the picture, which was ridiculous. Castiel opened the message.

“Nothing so far, but as soon as he has something you will be the first to know.”

Castiel leaned against his desk facing Dean behind his.”What do you think the chances are that this is just a random murder? Some religious zealot, instead of a someone targeting mates?”

Dean blew out a breath. “I...uh, anything is possible, I guess. I just think the note with the angelic poem is a little too coincidental. This person obviously knew their routine, which means he’d been studying them for awhile. He had to have known about Ambriel.”

Castiel nodded, “Yes, well I was wondering about the phone call that Ambriel got at the end of shift. Sounds like someone wanted her to get home. We need to find out who she was talking to.”

A brisk knock at their door had both Dean and Cas standing up straight. “Come in,” Cas called out.

Bobby walked in, giving them a quick nod, followed by Commissioner Crowley, who greeted them. “Hello boys.”

“Hello sir, Lieutenant,” Castiel said, nodding at both of them.

Not wasting anytime, “Give me the rundown,” Bobby said, perching a hip on the edge of Dean’s desk. Castiel gave a verbal report with Dean jumping in once in awhile.

“Cas and I were just discussing whether we thought this was just some random killer with a hard on for religious poetry, or this was someone who was actively searching out mated pairs. “

 “Well? What do you think?” Bobby asked sharply.

 "If I had to go with my gut, I would say it’s targeted,” Dean said and Cas nodded in agreement.

 “We have a potential witness coming in tomorrow at 9 to sit with Turner and do a sketch. Some man purchasing the same cleansers Jacie Hudgens was washed with before death. About a 1200 dollar cash purchase,” Castiel said.

“I wanted to express my thanks for how well you did with my mother.” Crowley said. “I know that it must have been a shock to find out she was related to me, but she assured me you both handle things extremely well, and kept her calm. You reflect well on the department, and in turn , on me, so thank you for that.”

“It’s just our job, sir, wouldn’t have mattered who the witness was,” Dean said firmly. “After we get the sketch back from Turner, I think we should check out that dance club,” Dean looked at Bobby when he said it, but he was addressing everyone.

“Yes, the sooner we get in there to talk to the staff the better,” Castiel said, but Dean shook his head no.

“I think we should go undercover. If we go in as cops and the guy works there or something, we will never get any information. Cas, if this guy is targeting bonded pairs, than what is a better well to drink from than a club literally catering to mates?”

“So you basically want to offer us up as bait.”

“Yes.””

Castiel thought for a moment before nodding. “Yes. You’re right. It would be the quickest way to get information.”

Crowley and Bobby were watching the exchange, and Crowley raised his brow at this turn of events.

“Are you two sure you can handle something like that? I have been in those mated clubs before. You can’t just sit next to each other and sip pretty drinks. If this person is targeting bonded mates, he’s going to need to believe you’re together. All soulful looks and barely repressed lust.”

Dean cleared his throat and looked at Bobby, catching the lieutenants shrewd eye. “Well, that won’t be a problem. I was kind of hoping to tell you over family dinner or something, but Castiel and I...we are mates.”

“Well, that’s convenient,” Crowley said in surprise while Bobby just stared at the two of them.

“When did this happen?” he asked gruffly.

“We’ve known for awhile, but it was only recently that we decided to do something about it,” Castiel said quietly. “We’re not only mates, we’re true mates. Which makes us pretty rare and probably a collectable to whoever it is that killed Jacie Hudgens and Ambriel.”

“Does your mother know?” Bobby asked, rounding on Dean and he laughed.

“No, and please, let’s keep it that way, we plan on outing ourselves at dinner on Sunday.”

Bobby sighed. “I need to ask if you two are okay doing this. We can bring in a couple other people, wire them up, have them infiltrate the club. Maybe Balthazar at the 103?”

Dean shook his head. “No. This is our case, we got this.”

“This isn’t about territory, Dean, this is about your lives. You’re telling me you idjits are mated, and I am happy for you, but if things go south…”

“Not to mention, we need to know that you are focused on the case and the potential victims and not too busy being worried about each other,” Crowley said, not unkindly, more of a reminder.

“Dean and I worry about each other regardless, being mates does nothing to change that. We will still work just as effectively. As for your other concern, ”Castiel turned to look at Bobby. ‘We are bonded, but the ritual isn’t fully complete yet. We can hold off a few days.” Castiel saw Dean’s cheeks flame at the turn of the conversation but still he spoke.

“I’m not promising that.  But I will promise that Cas and I know how to do our jobs. We’ll get this guy. We aren’t turning this over to another team. Besides, the commissioner just said that it needs to be believable. No one would be more believable than us.” Dean said and Bobby actually snorted at that.

“Fine. Pop in there a couple of times this week for some recon. Get them used to seeing your faces. Talk to the staff, find out if anything special happens on the weekends.” Bobby advised and Castiel nodded.

“Jacie Hudgens was taken on a Saturday. We don’t know if that has more to do with her schedule or the killer’s, so I agree. It would be smart to “stake out” the place,” Castiel said and glowered when Dean snickered at his air quotes.

“Hopefully we might get a hit at the end of the day on whoever saw Jacie last on Saturday.  Right now we are kind of at a stand still until we get the sketch tomorrow. And we still need to talk to Kevin.” Dean said as he fiddled with the arrangement of pictures on the murder board.

“I thought you interviewed the hospital staff?” Crowley asked.

“We did,” Castiel said, “everyone except my brother in law. He was in surgery and we had to leave to meet with Ms. Macleod.”

Crowley smirked at that. “Ms. Ah, she must have loved that. She’ll tell you it’s the yoga and healthy living that keeps her so young.”

“Whatever works,” Dean said with a laugh. “How is she holding up? I know she was worried about what she was going to tell her students.”

Crowley sighed heavily. “She puts on a good front, all sarcasm and humor, my mum is. But she was very fond of Jacie. Apparently, she was teaching Ambriel to dance on the side. The girl wanted to be able to dance at her wedding without looking like a fool next to her dance instructor wife.”

Castiel felt a pang at that, another lost dream. He thought of Jacie’s mother, alone now, and the pang turned to an ache. He had to fight not to think about Mary and Sam, and how they would cope if something happened to Dean. Castiel felt Dean’s eyes on him and he took a deep breath and cleared his mind as best he could.

“Do you think we should release the sketch to the public, or wait until we check out the club?” Castiel asked Dean, who paused, looking thoughtful.

“I say we release it. It’s not like we are going to walk into Birds of a Feather showing it around. I imagine if the guy saw even a hint of cop around in there, he’d bolt. I think releasing it would give the illusion that we don’t already have a place narrowed down. Not that we really do, I mean, we are going on this assumption that the club is his playground and the patrons are the kiddies he likes to kidnap, but we can’t be positive.”

“But you think it is,” Bobby finished.

“But we think it is,” Dean confirmed.

“Well, alright boys. Trust your instincts and keep us updated,” Crowley said before heading out the door. Bobby followed behind with a “Be careful, and watch each other’s backs.”

“Always,” they said in unison.

The room was uncomfortably quiet with Crowley and Bobby gone and for a minute Castiel and Dean just stared at each other. Then Dean blew out a breath, sinking heavily into his seat behind the desk. He buried his head in his arms and mumbled into it, so he was barely audible.

“This sucks,” is what he said and Castiel let out a short laugh.

Cas sat back at his desk, leaning back, looking relaxed but vibrating with energy. He wondered if Dean could feel it.

“I love you, you know.”

Dean looked up at his words and smiled. “I know.”

“I’m just...I’m on edge. I keep thinking about what will happen to everyone around us if something happens to us. I can’t stop thinking about it, and I feel twisted up.”

“Your having an anxiety attack, buddy. It’s normal. I mean, this is a lot. Look how long it took for you to come around?”

“Dean-”

“No, that wasn’t a dig. I’m just saying, it took you a long time to come to terms with us. Hell, you’re still coming to terms with it. And then we get this case, which literally, throws every fear you have ever had about us being together, in your face. I get it. I meant it when I said I would give you some space. But when we go in that club, you gotta hold it together. You can’t flinch if I sit close to you, you can’t push me away if I lean in for a kiss.”

“I don’t want to push you away,” it was true, he didn’t. Yet…

“Yeah, you say that, but you were the one who wouldn’t hold my hand this afternoon. And like I said, it’s fine. It’s not gonna last, and I’m gonna be here for you when you snap out of it. We are meant to be, man. That’s not just gonna go away because you’re freaked out right now. Better you get it out of your system now, because doing what we do, man? This won't be the last case like this that we see in our lifetime. There are some sick motherfuckers out there. “

“I keep wondering what the motivation is,” Castiel said. “Is it someone who is against interspecies relationships? Was it someone who was hurt by angels and this is punishment?”

Dean went over to the board and began writing.

_Motive?_

_Hate crime?_

_Anti angel?_

 

“It’s interesting how he washes the body. Like he was purifying Jacie.” Dean cocked an eyebrow at Cas.  “Wouldn’t it be the other way around? Wouldn’t it be the angel sullied by the human? Why was Ambriel left alone, to die, when Jacie was scrubbed clean and presented?”

“Maybe we see if we can get a consult from Missouri,” he suggested. Missouri Moseley was the resident profiler, her findings were always spot on. She had a touch of psychic ability in her that didn’t hurt either.

“No dice, she is booked solid. We are on our own with this,” Dean said regretfully.

“Well, we have always been enough before,” Castiel said, trying for light and earning himself a grin.

“Yes we have. Now come on. We gotta go pick up your sister’s wine before dinner.”

 


	25. Chapter 25

The breeze had picked up by the time they had left the building and headed back to Dean’s car.  Castiel watched as Dean strode ahead of him, bow legged gait confident in his direction and where they were going next.  Coconut teased his senses as the wind ruffled Dean’s short honey-toned hair, making him smile softly. God, was that shared shower really only that morning?  When Castiel slid into the car next to Dean and took his hand, lacing their fingers, he didn’t need to look to know Dean was smiling.

They hit a local _Pioppi’s_ for the wine Hael had requested and Dean picked up  two 4-packs of Downeast Cider, one to bring home with him. The ride to Hael and Kevin’s was quiet, but thankfully not uncomfortable. Castiel concentrated on the feel of Dean’s thumb rubbing against his knuckle, on the purr of Baby’s engine and that spicy leather and sandalwood smell that was uniquely Dean. Deciding to say fuck it, Castiel allowed himself to slide closer to Dean and let his head rest on his strong shoulder. Cas sighed contentedly, knowing it wouldn’t take much for him to doze off. He knew they were both getting to the point where they were running on fumes. Castiel was determined that they would question Kevin, enjoy dinner and then go home to crash until they had to meet with the witness and Rufus Turner in the morning.

Dean pulled up to Hael and Kevin’s and Castiel noticed that Ollie was frantically waving at them from the doorway. Beside him, Dean chuckled. They left the car and, Dean remembered to grab his cider and the bottle of wine from the back and strolled up the walk to the house. They hadn’t even made it up the steps when Oliver had wrenched the door open.

“Unca Cas! Unca Dee! Come on, the minions are winning!”

“Oh no, we can’t have that,” Dean’s tone was serious, automatically going into strategic talk, as if he knew exactly what battle Ollie was talking about, and why it was so devastating that the minions were, indeed, winning. “I want you to get the ninja turtles to cover the corners, and put the army men in a line up front. The minions are bigger, but the men are quicker. We need to talk to your mom and dad for a few minutes, so you need to hold off the alliance for awhile without me, okay?”

Ollie looked up at Dean with solemn eyes and nodded. “I’m on it,” he said, very grave and Castiel felt his heart melting as he watched the interaction. He couldn’t help but wonder what Dean would be like with their kids someday. If that was a route they ever wanted to travel, that is. Hael stood in the doorway of the kitchen, tidy as a fifties housewife, complete with apron and sundress. Old fashioned suited his sister, she looked lovely.

Castiel and Dean took turns kissing Hael’s cheek and thanking her for having them over. Dean handed over the red wine she’d requested.

“Thanks. Kevin should be home soon, why don’t you open that for me so we can let it breathe.”

Dean raised his eyebrows at Castiel and mouthed “fancy” to him, and Castiel laughed.

“What’s funny?” his sister asked and Cas just shook his head, sitting down at the kitchen table. Dean cracked open one of his ciders and offered it to him. Cas gratefully accepted, taking a long draught of the crisp apple liquid. Dean slid in the seat next to him, arm going over the back of Castiel’s chair. Cas watched as Hael’s eyes narrowed at them speculatively. Castiel met her gaze head on. He thought perhaps she would ask questions, but she remained quiet, until the oven dinged.

Hael grabbed the potholders to pull out a casserole dish filled with lasagna, cheese bubbling at the top and filling the kitchen with the delicious smell of garlic and tomato. He watched as she cut out a small piece for Oliver to cool in a plastic bowl, then placed the lasagna on a trivet on top of the stove before sliding a loaf of garlic bread on the center wrack and hitting the timer for 15 minutes.

“I was going to make a salad, but I just never got around to it. I can throw one together now if you’d like?” she questioned but Cas didn’t want her to bother.

“We’re good. Now that Sam is back, I’ll be eating more green stuff than I ever wanted,” Dean grumbled before taking a swig of his beer.

“Oh, Sam is home. Castiel, you didn’t tell me that,” she admonished. “I would have invited him for dinner too.”

“Don’t worry about it, Hael, honestly. I texted Sam earlier and he’d already made plans to hang out with Jo and Ellen tonight. They’ll be plenty of time for him to visit anyway. He’s living with me now, the Sasquatch decided to transfer to NYU to be closer to us.”

“Oh, that’s wonderful,” Hael said a she pulled two wine glasses from the cabinet and a Curious George sippy cup.

Dean gestured to the cup. “That for you or Ollie? “ he joked, earning himself a smack with the dishtowel. A loud yell of “Daddy!” came from the living room, signaling that Kevin had come home.

By the time Kevin made it into the kitchen, the bread was done, and Ollie’s dish was cooled enough to eat.

“Hey, guys, I’m sorry I couldn’t talk to you today. Had a complication in surgery.”

“Everything turn out okay?” Dean asked as he shook Kevin’s hand.

“Thankfully, yes. But I don’t want to talk about work right now, and I know you guys have questions you need to ask me. Should we go to my office?”

Kevin’s office was really more like a den. There were book shelves and a kid sized desk for when Kevin had to do paperwork and Ollie was around. As they walked down the hall Oliver called out, “Unca Dee! Everyone is in posis- po...everyone is ready!”

Castiel and Dean both snickered a little and Dean called back to tell Ollie to have the men hold their position and that he would be with him shortly. When they got to Kevin’s office they went over the same things with him that they had with Gabriel, Becky and Mastema.

“I can’t believe this even happened. Ambriel was such a great person. Don’t get me wrong, Jacie was great too, but I didn’t know her as well. I really only knew her through Amby. “

“Did you talk to her on Saturday? Did she mention her plans to you?” Castiel asked his brother in law and Kevin nodded.

“Yeah, I talked to her. With her working in the NICU and me being a peds surgeon, we run across each other a lot. She was excited because apparently Jacie had a surprise for her, but she wasn’t going to get it until they met up that night.”

“Did she say where they were going?” Cas asked, knowing the answer but still needing to cross all of the t’s.

“Yeah, they really like Birds of a Feather. The mated club?”

“Have you ever been there?” Dean asked. “Is that some place that you and Hael ever would have hung out at?”

Kevin hoisted himself onto the edge of his desk. “We went a few times, just to check it out. It wasn’t really our scene. The music is very techno, and the ambiance is a little dark for what I thought bonded pairs would like. It almost had a BDSM feel to it, as well. The performers dance in skimpy leather and some of the couples you could tell, were very on board with the _50 Shades of Grey_ lifestyle, if you know what i mean. I’m talking collars and leashes, the whole shebang. Definitely not our scene.”

“Was there public sex or nudity?” Dean questioned and Kevin looked thoughtful for a moment.

“It was borderline. They had these filmy screens that would come down and you could see the shadows of people performing sexual acts, but you couldn’t actually _see_ anything.”

"Kevin, did Ambriel have any idea what the gift was that Jacie was getting her?” Castiel asked, “any idea at all where it might be coming from?”

“Well, she knew it was in town somewhere because Jacie needed to pick it up on her way to meet Ambriel at dinner. They were going to _Monte Cristo's_ for dinner before they went to the club. I’m pretty sure that Amby thought it was wedding rings. They had talked about getting them, and how they didn’t really need engagement rings and wedding bands, but that they definitely wanted them. Jacie knew a lot of local artisans, mostly through her work. When the kids put on recitals, they hired locally for costumes and jewelry for the students. Ambriel said she bet that she had their rings designed because every time she brought up going ring shopping, Jacie would somehow find a way out of it.”

Castiel nodded, pleased that their conclusions had been the same.  He was beginning to think, however, that Aaron would not be getting any affirmatives on Jacie sightings in the the big name jewelry chains if she was a girl who tended to go with local, small businesses.

“One last thing,” Dean said, rolling his shoulders, a sure sign that the day was wearing on him, “have you noticed any black vans hanging around the hospital, or the ER entrance?”

Kevin rolled his eyes. “Dean, come on. Do you know how many cars I see in and out of that parking lot on any given day?”

“I know man, but I have to ask. Do me a favor, and keep your eyes peeled. Here and at the hospital. If anyone in a black van approaches the house, don’t let them in, call me or Cas.”

“You’re serious,” Kevin asked, brow wrinkled in concern and Dean nodded.

“Afraid so.”

A soft knock at the door sounded and Hael poked her head in. “Take your time, but dinner is on the table. Ollie is about to pitch a fit, so don’t mind any screaming,” she joked.

"No worries, Hael, we're done here," Dean said easily.

They followed Hael out of the room and heard little feet stomping.

“I don’t wanna eat, I wanna play! Unca Dee, you told me we could play.”

Castiel watched as Dean walked over and sank down to his knees so he was on Oliver’s level.

“Dude. come on. We can’t fight on an empty stomach, that wouldn’t be fair to our men. Let's chow down on some grub and then we can kick minion butt, okay?”

Oliver’s little face that had been set in a pout lit up with a smile that seemed to be contagious, as everyone in the room was grinning now. It was amazing to Castiel, how much joy a child’s smile could bring.

They kept things light at the dinner table, and Oliver was happy to have an audience for his antics. It wasn’t until after Dean had been sent into the living room to do epic minion battles and Castiel was helping his sister clean up in the kitchen that she said anything.

“So...you and Dean seem closer,” she said, exchanging a  smile with Kevin as he dried the wine glasses.

“Um, yes. Yes, we are.”

“Anything you wanna tell us?” she said curiously and Castiel noticed the mirth in Kevin’s eyes as he went about clearing the table. He had a feeling that Gabriel might have already spilled the beans.

“Well, since you asked so nicely, then yes. Dean and I are mates. Or, nearly mates..we haven’t quite..” Castiel trailed off, not quite comfortable going into the semantics of he and Dean’s sex life.

“Well, congratulations, brother. I am so happy for you. I always knew that there was something between you, I just never thought you’d go for it," She said with a laugh and Castiel tilted his head curiously in question.

Kevin looked up from the table where he was wiping down some of Oliver's tomato mess. “She just means because you're so cautious. Hael has been afraid you’d be too scared to go in that direction."

Castiel sighed and smiled ruefully.  “Yes, that was how I felt. How I still feel, actually. Quite frankly, I am scared to death. But not being together out of fear is not fair to Dean. Not fair to both of us, actually. True mates belong together, not pining for each other from the sidelines.”

Hael sucked in a breath, “You are true mates? Seriously?”

“Wow, that is really something,” Kevin said. “I read a study where, like, only 3 percent of the population ever actually find their true mates.”

Hael walked over to Kevin and squeezed his cheeks before kissing him silly. Castiel laughed at his blush when Hael said ‘You’ll always be my true mate, no matter what anyone says.”

A war cry sounded from the next room and Castiel peeked his head out to see Dean and Oliver doing some elaborate dance that included them stomping around and flexing their muscles making a loud “hnnng” sound.

“Victory is ours, Unca Dee!” Oliver said, striking a hilarious  superhero pose. Castiel could see Dean’s jaw tick as his partner tried like hell to hold back the laugh, and instead mirrored the pose. Castiel felt his sister behind him, hooking her head over his shoulder, watching the show.

“Holy hell, I love him so much,” he said quietly and Hael laughed and kissed his cheek. He felt his phone buzz in his pocket and pulled it out. Aaron. He scowled. The rookie must be sending the info to both him and Dean now, as he watched Dean pull his own phone out of his pocket. Castiel swiped and opened the message. No hits on the jewelry stores, but he still had a few more to go to that would have to wait until the morning because they were closed by now. Castiel sent him a text back asking him to add on any local craft jewelry makers, and to check out craft fairs on Lincoln Street. They were mostly selling things like scarves and hand woven blankets but it couldn’t hurt to check. Castiel met Dean’s eyes across the room, and he held up his phone to indicate that he’d also gotten the message.

The message from Aaron reminded Castiel that he had some questions for Hael, so while Dean and now Kevin sat on the couch with Oliver, ready for a rousing episode of   _Sid the Science Kid_ , he asked his sister for some spiced chai and advice.

They sat across the table from each other, cupping their mugs and Castiel noted his sister had a silly little smile on her face.

“What’s that look for? “ he asked her and she rested her chin in her palm.

“I’m just happy for you. Plus, it’s nice to have someone to talk to about these things, you know? Not everyone is going to understand the whole feeling each other's emotions things. Or how crowded your head might feel sometimes. Or how amazing... _other_ aspects of your life because,” she finished with a brazen little giggle.

“For shame, Hael,” he teased. “Actually, there is something I wanted to talk to you about.”

“What’s that?” she asked, blowing on her steaming mug.

“Jealousy. See, there is this young rookie, who is in all honesty, very nice. He’s a hard worker, always willing to lend a hand. We have him doing some grunt work on this case, trying to train him up a little bit. But the thing is…”

“The thing is?”

Castiel huffed out a breath and pushed a hand through his hair. “Except everytime I see him, I want to punch him in the face.”

To say Hael looked shocked would be an understatement. But then she burst out laughing.

“That’s nice. Thanks. I am glad you find this so amusing.”

“I’m sorry,” she said, still chuckling, “go on, please. Tell me why you feel the need to punch this supposedly nice young man.”

“He wants Dean. He’s had this crush on him for the longest time, and it’s discombobulating, because before Dean and I were officially together, I knew this, and yes, it was irritating. But that’s all. I didn’t feel this...this violent anger. He’s practically a kid, and I know that Dean doesn’t see him that way. Though he did talk about letting Aaron take him out sometime, but he didn’t mean it. It was just that I had that date, and he was trying to save face,” he paused to sip at his tea, loving the warm slide as it soothed his throat. “I pushed Dean away, for a long time. I told him I loved him, but I wasn’t willing to risk both of our lives by being with him.”

“Ouch, Castiel. I take it Dean wasn’t having any of that.”

Castiel laughed. “Dean deserves way more credit than he is given. He knew being apart was wrong. But he went along with it, for me. Said he was going to wait until I wised up. It wasn’t until the night before my date with Balthazar that I realized that what I was doing was wrong and hurtful in so many ways. I was not only making myself miserable, I was leading on a good man, and breaking Dean’s heart in the process, needlessly.”

“You always were the over thinker, the most cautious in our clutch. Give yourself a break, you realized you made a mistake, but you fixed it. Obviously Dean has forgiven you.”

“Yes. But back to this jealousy thing. I need to get a handle on it. Benny has feelings for Dean too, but Benny is my friend. I don’t want to start having violent thoughts towards him too.”

“Castiel,” Hael said, laughing, “You're fine. This started happening after you made a commitment to each other, correct? A verbal acknowledgement of your feelings and where everything was going?  On top of that, you haven’t, what is the saying...sealed the deal yet, right?” Castiel shook his head.

“What’s happening is your body sees your mate, your heart and your mind know he’s your mate, but you haven’t fully, physically claimed him. That instinct inside of you that wants to bite and mark and show everyone around you that Dean belongs to you, and only you, hasn’t been sated yet. So whether it’s logical or not, your body reacts to anyone with an interest in Dean, territorially. It will settle down once you claim each other.”

Castiel nodded. Claiming each other sounded so much more romantic than ritual sex.

“Has Dean noticed your behavior?” Hael asked and promptly threw her head back laughing at the bitchface he learned to perfect from Sam, graced his face.

“Yes, he’s noticed. He thinks it’s funny.”

“Its Dean. Of course he does. Hey Dean!” Hael yelled from the kitchen.

“Yeah?” Dean yelled back.

“ _Aschaniis ol oiad tahila!_ ”

“Thanks, sis!”

“Oh my, you have your hands full with that one,” Hael said, amused.

He certainly did, and Castiel wouldn’t have it any other way.


	26. Chapter 26

It was after 8 pm when Dean and Castiel stepped out into the cool, spring air. It was a lovely evening, he wished he wasn’t too exhausted to enjoy it. They’d stayed late enough to watch a video with Ollie and help get him to bed. Castiel had spoken with his sister at length, but he didn't believe all of it was case related. At least not with Hael hollering into the living room to welcome him to the family. That had led to a discussion with Oliver on how, yes, he was in fact going to be his real Uncle now and how happy that made him and how Ollie couldn’t wait to tell his friend Dennis Paul Ray Jr, because he and Dennis Paul Ray Jr talked about everything together. When Dean had looked at Kevin confused, Kev had just shrugged.

“That’s how the kid introduced himself when he moved next door, so that’s what Ollie calls him.”

Well, alrighty then.

Dean waited while Castiel buckled in before starting the car, remembering to buckle himself, lest he feel the wrath of pissed off angel.

“I talked to Hael about the club. She had confirmed what Kevin already told us, that it wasn’t really their scene, but a lot of people seemed to have fun there. I also thought to ask her what we should wear when we go.”

Dean looked over at Cas. “Good call, I didn’t even think of that. What did she say?” he asked, watching as the headlights of other cars poured in through the windsheild, turning Cas’ dark hair to a gleaming mess. _Jfc Winchester. Eyes on the road._

“Well, she correctly assumed that leather was out,” he said dryly and Dean laughed. “She said aside from the obvious BDSM wardrobe, the rest were just in jeans and tee shirts. No plaid,” he warned and Dean poked out his lower lip. Castiel snickered. “I’m sorry, _ol monons_ , not everyone is as married to the lumberjack look as you are.”

“You see, I want to be offended, but you just called me your heart in Enochian, which kind of turns me to goo, and that really isn’t playing fair.”

Castiel laughed loudly that time, nose crinkling in that adorable way that made Dean just want to press kisses all over his gorgeous face.

They passed a Dunkin Donuts and Castiel teased “Hey, don’t you wanna stop?”

Dean groaned. “No thanks. As much as I love that stuff, all the acid is probably eating my stomach lining, I feel like aside from that hard cider, all I have lived on is coffee for the past 24 hours. That lasagna was awesome though. Don’t tell my mom, but i think I like Hael’s better than hers.

Castiel tutted. “Those are fighting words, Winchester, better not let anyone else hear you say that. Especially Sam, because you know those will be the first words out of his mouth on Sunday.”

Dean took in Cas’ relaxed demeanor and took a chance. He held his hand out, palm up and let out a little sigh of relief when Cas linked their hands without hesitation.

“You seem better,” he said, as they paused at a stop sign.

“I feel better. It helped, talking to my sister.

Dean brought Cas’ hand to his lips and pressed a soft kiss to his knuckles. “I’m glad.”

“Yes, and bonus, this irrational anger I have towards Aaron should go away once I have claimed you,” Castiel said matter of factly and Dean sputtered.

“Once you’ve claimed me, huh? I guess that answers the ‘who’s gonna top the first time’, question,” he said, breathless with humor and a little bit of lust, if he was being honest with himself.

Castiel merely shrugged, a small half smile tugging at his perfect lips. "I don't need to top to claim you, Dean."

Yes, Dean needed this case solved yesterday.

When they pulled into Dean’s parking lot, the first thing he noticed was the the spotlight on Frank’s balcony.

“Oh Jesus Christ. That’s not going to end well.”

“Hmm,” was Castiel’s reply.

Dean waited for Cas to get out of the car, sending him a nod of thanks for grabbing the other 4 pack of cider, that he would have left in the car. Together they strolled up to the building, pausing to look up at at the brightly lit balcony that was currently lighting up the entire front lawn of the complex.

“Hey there, Frank.”

“Evening, detective. Detective with wings,” Frank leaned over the railing, cigar clasped between his lips as he saluted at both of them.

“I gotta ask, what’s with the spotlight?” Dean knew he must have been wearing a _what the fuck_ expression because Frank sighed as though having to explain something to a toddler.

“I just thought that maybe knowing that the whole community could see them, whoever it is making all of those illegal deliveries next door, might be too afraid to come by.” He said, as if that made total sense.

Dean sighed. “Unfortunately Frank, there is no proof that anything illegal is being dropped off at the neighboring building, and these kind of spotlights are against the complex’s rules. I’d hate to see anyone lodge a complaint against you, man.”

Frank narrowed his eyes in consideration. “You know, i didn’t think of that. That is probably what they are hoping for. I dig a little too deep, I break a few rules to discover the truth, but in the end, I get the boot. I can see it now,” he murmured between puffs of smoke,”I leave this spotlight up, and they call in a complaint against _me_. They must know I am on to them. Looks like it’s time for another bug sweep.”

“Alright then, goodn-”

“Shhh. They’ll hear you,” Frank hissed before killing the light. The muffled sound of a slider door closing signaled him going inside.

“He’s pushing some legal boundaries ,” Castiel said and Dean nodded.

“Yeah. I won’t let him go too far.”

Dean used his key to open the door and the walked down the hall until they reached Dean door.

“Well, you won’t be around forever to keep an eye on him, does he have any family you can call?”

“Am I going somewhere I don’t know about, Cas?” Dean joked as he entered the apartment. It was quiet, Sam still wasn’t back and Dean relished in the stillness. His bed was calling him and he could not wait to fall asleep, wrapped around his angel, for the next 8 or 9 hours, barring any emergencies.

Castiel hung up his coat, and took Dean’s as well. He kicked off his shoes and leaned against the closet as he watched Dean bend over to untie his bootlaces. Dean didn’t take them off though, he waited until Cas had followed him into the bedroom, where he kicked them under the bed. Castiel didn’t speak until they had both stripped down to boxer shorts. When Dean pulled back the comforter Castiel spoke.

“I guess I just assumed once this was all done with and everything was calm, that you would come and live with me,” Castiel’s voice was even but Dean could feel his nervousness. Dean almost laughed. Why would Cas be afraid? Did he really think Dean would say no?

“Yeah, I guess that makes the most sense, right? More room, big yard. The lease here is paid up for the year, Sam could live here, maybe take on a roommate, “ Dean said as he settled back against the pillows. He looked over to see Castiel staring at him curiously.

“You’re awfully calm about this.”

Dean raised a brow. “Should I be upset?”

“No! No, of course not. I just thought you’d, I don’t know, have a little nerves or something,” Castiel’s smokey voice held enough nerves for the both of them.

“Cas,” Dean said, turning on his side to face his partner, “we’re true mates. I didn’t expect us to live separately, did you? “ Castiel shook his head no, as he turned on his side to face Dean as well.

“Because if you need more time, we can do that. I don’t need to move in right away,” Dean kept his tone gentle and Castiel broke out into a wide smile.

“I don’t need time, Dean. I’m just...I guess I am just surprised at how easy it is.”

Dean could understand that. “Oh, it won’t be easy. I’m sure you’ll have moments when you want to kill me,” Dean teased, reaching out and feathering his fingers down Cas’ stubbled cheeks. “You’re gonna need to shave tomorrow. You’re going past scruffy into hobo territory,” Dean sassed and Castiel snorted.

"I can’t believe it’s only almost 9pm and we’re already in bed,” Castiel said with a yawn.

“Worse,” Dean said as Cas’ yawn triggered his own,”it’s not even for sex. Its to actually sleep,” Dean found himself scooching forward until his head rested against Cas’ shoulder, arm slung across his belly.

A laugh rumbled out of Cas. “Yes, I do believe this is the longest foreplay ever in existence.”

Dean just hugged him tighter, breathing in rain, citrus and earth as he drifted off to sleep.

* * *

 

 

Dean woke up to warm breath on his neck and a hard cock nestled against his ass. He stared blearily at his alarm clock. 7:07am.  He’d slept for a solid ten hours. Dean carefully rolled out of Cas’ embrace, even if it was the last thing he wanted to do. As he slipped out of bed he watched as Castiel blindly reached forward, grasping at Dean’s pillow and then clutched it to his chest. Dean couldn’t help himself, he picked up his cell phone off of the nightstand and snapped a shot. Cas’ hair was sleep mussed and his plush pink lips were parted as he breathed softly. Dean figured he must have been drained. Physically and emotionally. Castiel never needed to sleep this long.

Leaving his love to steal in another hour, since he obviously required it, Dean went out into the kitchen to get the coffee started. He wondered what time Sam had come home, if he had at all. It wouldn’t be unheard of him to stay at Jo and Ellen’s, especially if he had indulged in a little Jim Beam.

As Dean sipped from his mug he thought about the case. He really hoped that the witness would be able to provide Rufus with enough detail for a decent sketch.  He really wanted to get this guy before another person lost their life.

Dean decided to make pancakes. He pulled the bisquick from the pantry and pulled the griddle out from under the counter to heat up. Dean peeked in the fridge and gave a little fist pump when he saw the container of blueberries. Sammy must have hit a farmers market yesterday.  He mixed the batter and added the blueberries, and threw a test pancake on the griddle. By the time Sam walked into the kitchen...well more like staggered, Dean had six done.

Sam yawned so hard that Dean could hear his jaw crack. His eyes fell on Dean’s pancake stack and groaned in appreciation.

“How do you always get them that perfect brown like IHOP, mine never come out like that,” Sam said as he reached for a pancake cooling on a plate next to the stove. Dean slapped at his hand with the spatula.

“Hey, hey, get a plate, Moose. Oh, and grab Mrs B,” Dean said and Sam rolled his eyes as he went to get the Mrs. Buttersworth out of the cabinet. “And the secret is no butter in the pan or on the griddle.”

“Really?”

“Yep,” Dean pulled off the last pancake and added it to the stack. “What time did you stumble in last night?”

Sam yawned again. “Like, 2am? I took an uber home.”

“I figured as much, otherwise you’d have been sleeping there,” Dean said with a laugh.

“Yeah, we played pool for a bit, but then Ash showed up and he and Jo and Ellen wanted to play hold’em.”

“Uh-oh. Dude, you suck at cards,” Dean said, curious as to whether or not Sam had any money left.

“No kidding. Wish you’d been around to remind of that after all the whiskey I drank,” Sam sulked.

“How much did you lose?”

“Only what I had on me, which was only forty bucks. What time did you get home. Is Cas with you?”

“We arrived at 9,” came a deep, gritty voice from the doorway. Castiel shuffled into the room in his boxers and a Louden Swain tee shirt liberated from Dean’s drawer. Dean was about to get Cas a cup of coffee when the angel crowded into his space searching for a hug. Dean happily embraced him, and Castiel sighed into the crook of his neck. Dean ran his fingers up and down Cas’ back, scratching at his shoulder blades while Cas “hmm’d” contentedly.

“You should have stayed in bed, we could have had time…” Castiel trailed off and Dean chuckled.

“I want more time than a quickie before we have to meet with Rufus. We deserve better than that, don’t you think?”

Castiel grunted. “Could have done something,” he pouted and Dean shook with laughter.

“You needed your sleep, and you know it. You know you’re never that tired unless your batteries are low. It’s been a crazy couple of days.”

“I’m sure I could have gone back to sleep after a quick handjob,” was Castiel’s response and Sam dropped his fork.

“So get this,” Sam said with false cheer, “I’m sitting right here.”

“I’m aware, Sam,” came Cas’ voice, muffled against Dean’s skin. “I’m tired and horny, not blind.”

“Alright, let’s ease up on Sammy this morning. He has a hangover and he lost all his money,” Dean singsonged.

Castiel pulled back from Dean to squint down at Sam. “Kin Huddard once said _The safest way to double your money is to fold it over once and put it in your pocket._ Maybe think of that next time."

Dean laughed at Sam’s baffled expression then steered Castiel towards a chair, handing him a plate and a fork, “Dig in,” he said, placing hot coffee in front of him.

They didn’t talk about the case. It was like Sam knew that it wasn’t something they wanted to discuss. After breakfast, they each took separate showers to avoid any chance of them being late. Once again Cas borrowed another suit jacket, this one blue, that he slipped over the Louden Swain tee-shirt he’d thrown on for breakfast. Followed up with his low slung jeans and trench coat, Dean felt like he was being punished. It seemed unfair that Castiel could look so deliciously gorgeous all of the time.

On the way out the door Dean told Sam not to wait up.

“Why, you staying at the office or something? Did you get a break in your case?” Sam’s eyes were alight with curiosity.

“No. We just have to check out a few places.”

One of the many good things about Sammy, Dean knew, was that for the most part, he knew when not to ask questions. Dean paused at the door.

“I’m sorry I haven’t been around much, Sam,” Dean said, seriously.

“Dean, come on. Don’t worry about it. Do you think I don’t know how important what you and Cas do, is? Go, get out of here!"


	27. Chapter 27

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [](http://imgur.com/wKc37Xb)   
> 

After a quick stop for coffee, Castiel and Dean made it into work with ten minutes to spare. Dean went to the office so he could add a few notes to the board and Castiel headed over to Rufus Turner’s corner of the bullpen. The man had a rough exterior and could be a little blunt, but he was excellent with witnesses. He always made them feel comfortable and got as many minute details out of them that he could.

When Castiel got to Rufus’s desk, the two shook hands.

“How are you doing, boy?” Rufus asked and Castiel smiled. It didn’t seem to matter one bit that Castiel was in fact, a few thousand years older than the 60 year old, he always referred to Castiel and Dean as boys.

“I am well, Rufus, thank you.”

Rufus side eyed him with keen chocolate colored eyes. “Rumor has it, you went and got angel-married to our resident bachelor. Any truth to that?”

For a moment, Castiel froze. Were they telling people? He supposed it wouldn’t hurt anything to be honest. The lieutenant and Crowley already knew, as did Charlie and Benny. In fact, for all he knew, it was Charlie or Benny who let it leak. He felt a little gut twist at the thought of Benny but pushed it down hard. He needed to claim Dean, as soon as possible. They needed to claim each other. He hated feeling this way. He’d wanted to growl, _actually growl_ , when the cashier at Dunkin Donuts winked at Dean when handing him back his change through the drive through that morning. It was quite ridiculous and unbecoming of an angel, in his opinion. Dean found it amusing, but for Castiel, being not in control of his emotions was very overwhelming.

Castiel cleared his throat. “There is, actually. Dean is my true-mate, and yes, I believe that one day we will go through the human convention of marriage. For angels, it’s not necessary, but I am happy to tie myself to Dean in every possible way.”

Rufus’s brows shot right up into his dark hair and Castiel could tell he was surprised.

“You were not expecting me to confirm these rumors, were you?”

Rufus broke out into a rare smile. “Nope, but that doesn’t mean I’m not happy to hear it. Congratulations,” he said heartfully.

“Congratulations on what?” Came Dean’s rumbling voice and Castiel rolled his eyes when he saw his partner.

Dean looked at him with a raised brow. “What?” he asked defensively and Castiel just sighed. He grabbed a napkin off the small pile Rufus had on his desk.

“Took a detour to Jody and Donna, didn’t you?” Cas asked as he wiped powdered sugar from the top of Dean’s lip. He felt his heart stumble as Dean’s gave childish smile on par with Oliver.

“Maybe,” Dean said, taking the napkin from Castiel’s hand and finishing the job himself. “I was actually on my way to see Charlie and talk to her about wiring us up for Birds of a Feather, but she was on the phone. She’s going to meet us back in our office after we finish up here,” Dean paused and looked at Rufus who was still smiling at them. “Now, why were you congratulating Cas?”

Rufus leaned back in his chair. “I heard he’d caught himself a Winchester. Just wanted to know if it was true. Heard it was, so congratulations to you too.”

Castiel loved it when Dean blushed. It made the tips of his ears pink and his freckles stood out even more than usual.

“Word gets around fast. Who’d you hear it from?” Dean asked. “I’m curious as to which loudmouth friend it was,” he said with humor.

“I believe it may have been your bloodsucking friend. But hey, go easy on him, I heard he was nursing a bit of a bruised ego and a little sloshed at the time. I’m sure he feels like an ass now,” Rufus said. He had a soft spot for Benny, though Castiel wasn’t sure what the story behind that was.

“No worries, Rufus, I’m not mad. Bobby and Crowley know, so I wasn’t planning on hiding it.”

Castiel lifted his chin at that. He hadn’t really thought that Dean would say any different, but hearing him speak with pride about their relationship made him feel warm, and a little regretful that if he had just been open in the beginning...but no use in dwelling.

The sound of clacking heels had the three of them turning as Officer Bass led a young woman over to where they crowded at Rufus’s desk. She was a pretty, mixed-race female, with long dark hair and warm brown eyes.

Aaron cleared his throat when they reached the group. “Mr. Turner, Detective Winchester, Castiel, this is Alicia Banes. She may have waited on the person you are looking for.”

Dean maneuvered himself in front of Castiel, and he let him. Better safe than sorry, where his instincts were concerned.

“Thanks, Aaron, we can take it from here. Make sure you let us know what’s happening with the rest of the jewelry stores on your list.”

“Of course, sir.” Aaron scurried away and Dean ran a hand down Castiel’s arm which immediately had a calming effect. He squared his shoulders and held out a hand to Alicia.

“Hello, Ms. Banes. We appreciate you coming in to speak with us and to work with Mr. Turner. He is exceptional at his job. I wonder, would you mind speaking with my partner and I for just a few minutes first?” Castiel asked and Alicia tucked a lock of hair behind her ear, a nervous habit, he would guess. She nodded and Castiel gestured to another chair opposite of Rufus’s desk.

“I’m going to grab us some drinks,” Rufus said, freeing up a chair for either Dean or Castiel. “Alicia...may I call you Alicia?” at her nod of assent, Rufus continued. “What can I get you? Coffee, tea, water? I think we have some ginger ale as well.”

“Ginger ale, please,” she said with a small smile and Castiel gave a nod of thanks as he knew Rufus was giving up his desk so the three of them could have privacy.

Castiel dragged another chair over from Walker’s empty desk, leaving Dean Rufus’s.

“Ms. Banes,” Castiel began, “Can you tell me what it was that stood out to you about this customer you had?”

“Well, not to sound rude, but he seemed kind of out of place for a salon, you know?”

“How do you mean?” Castiel cocked his head.

“Most guys we get in the salon, they’re clean cut. The kind who have regular manicures, or are in suits or tailored clothes. A lot of them use more product in their hair than I do,” she said with a little laugh. “Instead, he was more like...you,” Alicia had turned to look at Dean.

Dean raised his brows, “Me?”

“Yeah, like hot, but tough. Tee shirt, jeans, army jacket. Rough around the edges. Handsome, but a little dangerous,” Alicia blushed, “I-I’m sorry, I didn’t mean that as the come on it sounded like, I was just trying to be descriptive. Aaron said I would need to be as descriptive as possible if I wanted to be helpful.”

Dean chuckled softly and Castiel placed his hand on hers. “You’re doing just fine. Aside from Detective Winchester’s ego growing even larger, this information will surely be helpful,” Castiel reassured her and Alicia relaxed noticeably.

“Aside from being my wardrobe twin,” Dean said kindly, “was there anything else about him that set off your radar?”

Alicia nodded. “Yeah, most guys that come in there, and aren’t obviously there to partake in the facility, are guys looking for gifts for their mom, or their wife, girlfriend or sister, you know? They don’t really know what they are looking for, so a tech like me or one of the other employees kind of get a sense of who they are buying for and steer them in the right direction. We make a recommendation or often they’ll just buy a gift card. But this guy...he knew exactly what he was coming in for and it wasn’t cheap.”

“Is that what stuck with you the most?” Castiel asked and Alicia shook her head yes emphatically.

“Oh, yeah. You don’t forget someone shelling out 1200 dollars for shampoo and body wash, especially cash. I even said, ‘Oh wow,  is this for a charity or a raffle or something?’ ”

Castiel sat up straighter and Dean leaned in a bit. “And did he answer?” Dean asked.

“Yeah, but it didn’t really make any sense to me. He said something like the body being a mirror of heaven and making angels jealous. That’s not quite it, but-”

“The body’s a mirror of heaven: It’s energies make angels jealous. Our purity astounds seraphim. Devils shiver at our nerve,” Castiel quoted Rumi quietly and Alicia’s expressive eyes widened in admiration.

“Yes! That is it, word for word. I didn’t really get what he meant, I thought maybe he was just trying to be mysterious.”

Castiel caught Dean’s eye and knew he was thinking the same thing he was. Another angel quote. The chances that this was a random and not about mated pairs, had dwindled down to next to nothing.

Castiel was about to thank Alicia for her time when Rufus strode back up, holding two icy bottles of ginger ale, still dripping condensation. “Do you guys need a few more minutes?” he asked them and Dean shook his head no.

“No, we are all set, Alicia was very helpful, I have no doubt she’ll be able to give you all you’ll need to get a good picture of this guy. Can you make sure you shoot a copy to us when it’s done?”

“No problem, should I have the boys put out an APB too?” Rufus asked and Castiel exchanged glances with Dean.

“What do you think?” Castiel asked.

“I think we check out the club first. If we can recognize him in there from the sketch, I’d rather do that than have his picture flashed all over the news and giving him a heads up,” Dean said and Castiel agreed. He just hoped there wouldn’t be another victim between now and then. For all they knew, the guy only worked weekends. If their guy even worked at the club.

Castiel and Dean left Alicia in Rufus’s capable hands and walked back to their office to wait for Charlie to show up.

“She was good. If he’s our guy, Cas, this girl is gonna give us the face. “ Castiel was happy to see Dean excited, and he couldn’t help but agree.

“Yes, we got lucky. He should have spaced out his purchases, bought from different stores. It seems like a very rookie mistake,” Castiel said, sitting on the corner of his desk.

“Meaning you don’t think this is a serial killer?”

Cas licked his lips. Dean stood in the middle of the room with his arms crossed and he was regarding Cas with that utterly engaged look of his and it was distracting Castiel to no end. _Focus, Castiel, Focus_.

“I think this is a first timer, with a religious bent.”

Dean nodded. “He definitely has a hard on for angels. I am wondering if this is some kind of revenge thing. What was in that quote? _Its energies make angels jealous_? Is this about jealousy and revenge? Stealing a mate from someone?”

Castiel thought about it. “Yes, I can see that. But I wonder, why choose something that only gives you minimal relief? Sure, you make the angel suffer, by killing her human, but it’s only temporary. Then furthermore, they reunite in heaven,” he pointed out to which Dean smiled softly.

“That may be, but you have to imagine the amount of pain those few short hours might be considered worth it to someone. I can’t even imagine…” Dean swallowed harshly and didn’t saying, but he didn’t need too. For the first time since yesterday, Dean finally let a little of his newfound self control slack and Castiel was awash in anguish, horror and bone deep despair. His knees felt week from it and he was thankful he’d been sitting. As quickly as the intense feelings came, they left, as Dean locked it back up. Castiel could tell by his blush that he hadn’t meant let those feeling bleed through. Castiel shakily pushed himself off of the desk and crowded in on Dean where he stood.

Dean didn’t look up and Castiel grasped Dean’s cheeks, forcing his head up so he could see into the moss green eyes. Dean blinked at him, and Cas could see that he was holding back tears. Castiel rested his forehead against Dean’s and closed his eyes, whispering, “ _Olani Oai emna, ol hoath_.”

Cas felt a breath shudder out of Dean and Castiel pressed a kiss to his parted lips. They clung and released, Dean’s own hands coming to cup Cas’ cheeks. He could hear it when Dean’s thumbs brushed against his stubble. Soft tongues massaged each other, as their bodies drew even closer. Cas could feel the heat starting in his belly, but kept the kiss gentle. His Dean needed gentle now. Castiel always knew Dean felt things deep. It was one of the things he loved about the man. But Castiel had no idea just how far that depth went until becoming bonded. It was no wonder Dean loved so fiercely.

Cas gently tugged on Dean bottom lip, nipping and soothing with his tongue. He pulled back and Dean’s eyes remained closed but he had a soft smile on his face that Castiel wished he could save. Instead, he committed it to memory. A gentle tapping at the door had both of them looking up and Dean let out a shaky laugh.

“Come in, Charlie,” Dean said as he walked over to his own desk, leaning against it. Castiel watched, marveling at how expertly Dean was able to put on a classic, charming face, despite the fact that moments ago he was in a well of emotion and nearly in tears. He wondered where he had learned to do that, or if it was just some skill or defense mechanism that happened all on its own.

Charlie bustled through the door, all nervous energy. Castiel looked at her curiously. "Charlie, why are you all fluttery?”

‘What? No, I’m not fluttery,” she said, sounding way more guilty than the situation deserved.

“Dude, you fidgeting like you have the wedgie of the century,” Dean said with a laugh and Castiel had to bite back one of his own.

Charlie sighed and her shoulders sagged. “Fine. it was me. I’m the one that told everybody about you. I’m sorry, i just couldn’t help it.”

Dean looked lost and Castiel laughed. ‘You didn’t tell everyone Charlie, Benny did. Although, it was probably the combination of the both of you that had the bullpen humming. It’s alright. Dean and I don’t mind that everyone knows," Castiel said with a smile.

Charlie turned relieved eyes towards Dean who nodded. Castiel almost laughed when he saw the tension leave her body and she flopped into Dean’s chair, kicking her feet up onto his desk. “Good, cause I couldn’t help it, you’re both too adorable. So give me the skinny on this case. Why am I wiring you up?”

“We have to check out a club. Possible hunting grounds for our vics’ killer,” Dean said, coming around his desk to push at her combat boots. She only ignored him, and settled them more comfortably, crossing her feet at the ankles.

“So what’s this guy's kink?” she asked, taking a ponytail off of her wrist to tie her hair up.

“Human and angel bond-mates. He kills the human, breaking the bond with the angel, leaving her or him to die, for hours of torturous heartbreak, " Castiel said flatly, and felt bad when he saw Charlie’s face drain of color.

“Holy shit, guys. Talk about coming close to home,” she said and Dean gave a snort of laughter.

“Yeah, tell me about it,” Dean said, trying to make light, Cas could tell.

“So, is it creeping you out?” Charlie asked and not for the first time, Castiel wished that she wasn’t always so curious...or perceptive.

“We’re just doing the job, Red. Trying not to think about it too much,” Dean said. “Jacie Hudgens and Ambriel deserve more than that. They deserve our concentration and 100 percent focus. They deserve to have us doing everything we can to bring them justice.”

The phone rang on Castiel’s desk. “Castiel. Paranormal homicide division,” he answered.

_“Yes, hello detective. This is-_

“Mrs. Hudgens, yes, I recognized your voice, Ma’am. What can I do for you?”

Dean and Charlie fell silent as he spoke on the phone. 

_“They, um, they said their releasing Jacie to me. She’ll be brought to a funeral home of my choosing.”_

“Yes, Ma’am,” Castiel knew that in times like these, mourners were usually just looking to be heard.

“I was wondering if you had  news on my daughter’s case?”

“We are pursuing all leads Mrs. Hudgens, I can promise you that much,” Castiel heard the woman’s breath hitch. “As soon as we have any news for you, either I or Detective Winchester will be in touch. In the meantime, call if you have any questions,” Castiel sighed. There were few things worse than listening to the grief and heartbreak of a parent.

“How’ she holding up?” Dean asked and Castiel shrugged.

“As well as can be expected.”

Charlie sat up and clapped her hands. “Alright, so tell me why you need me to wire you up? Nothing you record will be admissible without the club’s permission.”

“I know nothing we film will be admissible, but if our guy is in there, and we follow him outside…”

“Anything filmed on a public street, you could use,” Charlie summarized.

“At least enough that we can show it to Alicia Banes and get confirmation on whether or not it’s our big spender,” Dean added.

“And if it is, we can at least bring him in for questioning or having a connection with the victim,” Castiel said and Charlie nodded.

“Okay, I have something you can use. Are you going in those clothes?” she asked, all business now.

“Yeah, we didn’t want to stand out too much by being too dressy or too grungy,” Dean said and Castiel scoffed.

“What?” Dean asked and Castiel rolled his eyes.

“Nothing. I just love how you make it sound as if your wardrobe choice had anything to do with this case, and not everything to do with the fact that all you have is tee shirts, jeans and flannels.”

“Hey,” Dean said indignantly, “I’m not wearing flannel and I own suits, too.” he gestured to the blue jacket Castiel was wearing. “Case in point.”

Charlie cleared her throat. “What I have will work better on Cas. I can attach it right to the breast pocket. I've actually been waiting to try this one out,” Charlie pulled out her cell phone. “Let me just tag my boys and have one of them send it up.”

Castiel felt his phone buzz and pulled it out to check. _Text from Bass_.

“Aaron said he had no luck on the jewelry store front, so he going to hit the craft stores with jacie’s photo,” Castiel said to Dean.

“Good. I’m thinking he’s not gonna find anything, though.”

Castiel quirked a brow. “Why? Do you think we were off about the rings?”

“No,” Dean said, shaking hi head. “I think that whoever it is that she met, possibly lured her to his house..”

Castiel could see how that would work. Especially if it is someone she knew and trusted.  That would suggest that Jacie was facing her killer, and a knife is not like a gun. Knives were intimate, knives were up close and personal. Yes, Castiel definitely thought that whoever killed Jacie Hudgens knew her. The question was, how well.

A knock at the door had one of Charlie’s boys waiting on the other side.

“Thank you, Devon,” Charlie’s voice was cheery, as it often was when playing with new tech.

“Okay, so this little guy,” she opened the box to reveal what to Castiel looked like a little black shirt button. Charlie pulled it out, holding it between her thumb and forefinger. “Take this film off of the back and attach it to the front of your breast pocket,” Charlie acted as she explained, adhering the little black button the front pocket of his jacket.

“Its voice and touch activated. If you want it on, you just tap your finger against it and say on. Same with zoom or magnify. If you want to shut it off, you need to remember to tap and say off, otherwise your going to wind up with something you never wanted recorded,” Charlie glared at Dean when he let out a snort of laughter.

“I didn’t mean something sexual, you jackass,” she said scathingly, which of course only made him laugh harder. “And if you want to take a picture, it’s a double tap, no word necessary,”

“That’s pretty cool, “ Dean said,”How do we get the information off of it?”

Castiel had wondered that too.

“You just tap and tell it _‘send to’_ and then say whichever email address.

The phone rang again and this time it was Dean’s.

“Winchester,” He said and he looked up sharply, catching Castiel’s eye.

_“Your girl did good, boy. I’m sending you the image now.”_

“Thanks, Rufus, you’re the best.”

“ _Now the only thing that could be off is the eyes. She said they were red rimmed. Like he’d been on something.  Now, he might not look like that now, or maybe he does. Depends on how the guy lived.”_

“Okay, thanks man, I’m going to open it now,” Dean said, hanging up the phone. “Cas, come here,” Dean said and Castiel moved to stand behind him at his desk.

Dean quickly pulled up his email and found one from Rufus waiting for him.  When he opened it, an image flooded the screen. Slicked back brown hair, light blue eyes, indeed, red rimmed. He had a mustache and a goatee that covered his rounded chin. A red scooped tee shirt and an army jacket. Castiel reached over Dean and stole the mouse to forward the picture to himself. Castiel would send the image to his sister, he knew she would keep it to herself, but Castiel would feel infinitely better if his family had a heads up.

“Yeah, no way do I look like that guy,” Dean scoffed and Charlie got up to look over his shoulder.

“The coloring is wrong and you don’t have the chin-stache, but the outfit is kinda your thing,” she said objectively and Dean rolled his eyes.

“No one asked you,” Dean pouted and Castiel patted his shoulder.

“It’s okay if you dress like a creepy murderer, Dean. I still love you,” Castiel bit his lip to hold back the laugh.

“Aw, Cas, you should put that in your wedding vows,” Charlie teased and Dean stood up.

“I hate you guys,” he said as he headed towards the door.

Castiel cocked his head, “Where are you going?”

“Coffee run,and then I want to give Elsie Jane a call. We need to find out what they were like in public. If we are going to be putting ourselves out as bait, we should know whether Jacie and Ambriel were touchy feely or if they were reserved. We don’t know what this guy is looking for.”

Castiel nodded. “Fine, that makes sense. I can call Kevin and Gabriel as well, see if they have any insight,” Dean nodded then seemed to be warring with something. Castiel couldn’t figure out what until he saw the shit eating grin on Charlie’s face. Dean wanted to kiss him goodbye, but he didn’t want to give the red-head the satisfaction. Castiel arched his brow at Dean in challenge and he finally sighed before coming back into Cas’ space for a soft kiss. Castiel grinned against Dean’s lips, noting the pink flush of his cheeks and the red tips of his ears.

“I’ll be back soon,” Dean said and then he turned to Charlie, “you shut up.”

Charlie lifted her hands in mock defense while Castiel just smiled fondly after him.

“You guys are so going to be that super gross couple that everyone wants to be and yet is simutaneously annoyed by,” she said wisely and Castiel couldn’t help it if is smile grew even wider.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Olani oia emna ol hoalth: I am here my love


	28. Chapter 28

When Dean got back to the office it was blessedly empty. He loved Charlie to death, but sometimes it felt like he and Castiel were under a microscope now that they were officially together. He hoped it would get to the point where people looked and treated them as they always did. It wasn’t as though much had changed. Aside from the physical aspect, they were still the same.

Dean placed a iced vanilla chai tea on Castiel’s desk before sitting at his own. Dean opened up his notebook, scrolling down until he found Elsie Jane’s phone number.

A quick conversation with her let him know that Jacie and Ambriel were a very affectionate couple who did not shy away from public displays of affection. That could both help and hurt them, in the long run. Mainly because once Dean started being physical with Cas, he never really wanted to stop. He imagined kissing his angel in the booth of some club, while trying to  keep an eye on his surroundings was going to be a test in and of itself.

As Castiel walked back into the office, hair all messy, pretty pink lips visably chapped, Dean thought it would be worth it.

“Why do you have such a sappy expression on your face?” Castiel questioned, eyes lighting up when he spotted his iced tea.

“Where were you?” Dean deflected and Castiel narrowed his eyes at him from behind his bendy straw.

“I went to go-thank you for this, by the way,” Cas gestured with his cup, “ to chat with Gabriel. He was nearby, so we sat outside. He says the energy in the precinct “bums him out”.

“He works in an emergency room where people die all the time,” Dean said and Castiel just shrugged.

“Don’t ask me to explain my brother, please.”

“Fine, then what did he say? Or was he too close to the building to concentrate?” Dean said snarkily, before taking a swallow of his coffee.

“He said that from what he saw of them together, that they were very comfortable around each other. They didn’t hide their relationship and were always either holding hands or had an arm across the shoulder. Gabriel said that when you looked at them together, they looked like they had been together for years, even though they hadn’t.”

“Hmm. Maybe that’s part of the appeal then.”

Cas shook his cup around and Dean knew he was swirling the sugar. “How do you mean?”

Dean leaned forward and clasped his hands together on his desk. “I mean what if this is what this guy looks for. Not just mated pairs, not newlywed type couples, but bond-mates that give off that been together forever vibe. Like, really committed.”

Castiel nodded thoughtfully, “You think he works under the assumption that the longer they're together, the deeper the bond, which would of course, in his mind, equal more pain,” Castiel steepled his fingers. “It wouldn’t work like that, though. He likely isn’t aware, but it doesn't matter when the bond was formed, or how long it has been there. A bond is a bond, it will hurt no matter what. The death of a mate would be just as traumatic for newly bonded pairs as ones who have been together for twenty plus years.”

“I sent Charlie a copy of the sketch so she could run it through the system. See if it pops anywhere and we could avoid techno club hell,” Dean said and Castiel tsked.

“No one said anything about techno music. It could be a very nice establishment.”

“Dude, your sister and Kevin both said it had a BDSM bent and live sex,” Dean said and Castiel rolled his eyes.

“They said nothing about live sex, they said that all of the performances were behind a filmy screen.”

“Cas. All that means is that we are going to be subjected to naked people behind a shower curtain.”

“Since when are you anti...anything naked, actually?” Castiel smirked at him when Dean was at a loss for words.

“It just weirds me out, I guess,” Dean shrugged, aggravated that he felt a twinge of embarrassment.

Castiel just leveled him with a stare and he found himself spilling.

“I guess it just feels kind of disrespectful to you, for me to be watching anything like that in front of you, or at all, really.”

Castiel’s face melted into a sweet smile and Dean sat up straight when the angel rose from his desk and found his way over to Dean. Castiel bent down, hangs gripping the arms of Dean’s chair as he leaned in to steal a kiss.

“You can look all you want,” Castiel said sweetly, lips grazing Dean’s a he spoke. “You touch,” he warned with a sharp bite to Dean’s bottom lip that had him yelping,” then we will have serious problems. _Om_?

Dean swallowed harshly, a little nervous and a lot turned on. “Yes, I understand.”

The rest of the day was spent going over paperwork that had fallen to the wayside. They met again with Bobby and Crowley to update them and checked in with Aaron who’d had no luck at the craftfair angle, which didn’t surprise them at all. Charlie called and let Dean know that nothing had popped when she ran the sketch through the system.

Dean made sure to check in with Sam, and he and Castiel shared a meat lovers pizza and a bottle of pepsi at their desks before they headed out. They decided to walk through the park. It was still early and they wanted to get to the club around 7pm.

When they passed by the fountain and saw tourist taking pictures with their laughing families Dean did a double take. It blew his mind that just the other night, this fountain was a stage for horrific death, and today, it was just a picturesque spot that families flocked to in the nice weather. Castiel must have picked up a little bit on what he was feeling, because Dean soon felt long fingers lace with his, giving Dean’s hand a reassuring squeeze.

"I gotta wonder where he was watching from, you know? To time it just right? You would think someone would notice someone carrying another person’s body through the park.”

“I agree. He must have studied this area for a while and found the times where there was a lull in traffic, if you will. Or he just got lucky.”

Dean nodded. “That’s what I am figuring, because how can you set a schedule to a park? You never know when someone is going to be coming through here. Hell, he could have run into a cop if he’d been just a little later.”

Dean let Castiel drag him over to a bench overlooking the playground. Kids see-sawed and hung on monkey bars.

“It’s okay that this gets to you, Dean. This is an area that represents innocence, fun and family. This is supposed to be an area for family photos and picnics. It’s okay to be disturbed.”

Dean sighed. “I hate that when I walk through here now I am not going to see this as the place I played frisbee with Sam. It’s not going to be the place where you and I took Ollie on that playdate with his little friend Lily. Instead, I am always going to think of a young woman who never got to marry the love of her life.”  One of the things that Dean loved the most about Castiel is that he could say these things to him and not be embarrassed for having feelings.

Castiel brought their linked hands up to his face and pressed a gentle kiss to Dean’s knuckles. “The fact that you care so much, is why you are the best person to stand for her now.”

“It would be so much easier if you could just, call heaven and ask Ambriel what happened,” Dean said wistfully and Castiel gave a sad laugh.

“Alas, there is no way to do that. Ambriel was earth bound. She rests in Jacie’s heaven now, and will not be disturbed.”

They sat together on the bench until dusk, watching families and couples and teenagers come through the park, some stopping to play on the swings, others throwing coins in the fountain. Finally, Dean leaned over to press a kiss to Cas’ forehead.

“Thank you, “ he murmured against Cas skin. Castiel just squeezed their linked hands in response and led Dean out of the park.

* * *

 

 

Birds of a Feather was on 5th, sandwiched between a college bar called _The Ivy League_ and a dance club called _The Green Door._ A bouncer in a plain blue collared shirt manned the door checking for I.D.’s, but Dean and Castiel were waved right on in.

The first thing Dean thought when he walked through the door was _tame_. He wondered if all of the crazy things that supposedly happened in there was just a weekend thing. Or a late night thing. The inside was actually quite rustic. The floors were hardwood in the area where the seating was. There were no typical tables and chairs. Everything was either small half-moon booths, or love seats, each with small tables. Tea lights filled clear heart-shaped glasses filled with water. The effect was very high school Valentines Day. Dean had a hard time imagining the way that Hael and Kevin had described it.

Past the seating area was a dance floor that led to a stage for entertainment.  To the right of the seating area was a gleaming onyx bar in what Dean assumed was granite. Dark leather bar stools lined the front of the bar where a dark haired woman named _Lisa_ , according to the nametag, manned it. There was no host or hostess, it wasn’t intended for fancy dinners. It was a place for conversation, for drinks and intimacy. Drinking and dancing, it didn’t seem to matter in what atmosphere, almost always ended the same way. In someone’s bed. But here? In a place like this, geared towards couples who truly only wanted each other, it was pretty much a guarantee.

Low pulsing music came through unseen speakers, and Dean was ashamed to recognize it as Caught a Light Sneeze by Tori Amos. He blamed Sam. He looked over at Castiel beside him and saw him nodding his head in time to the beat of the song and Dean was momentarily thrown as he was reminded once again just how _stunning_ Castiel was. Dean watched as a half smile stole up Cas’ face and he realized his thoughts must have been broadcasting pretty loudly.

Dean and Cas slid onto a love seat in plush black leather, and sat angled towards each other. Cas casually turned on the camera. A waitress appeared as if by magic, or more likely because he couldn’t take his eyes off of his partner. He vaguely remembered ordering a vodka tonic with lime for Castiel and a Thighslapper Ale for himself, but mostly he remembers staring into Cas’ eyes. He liked how the flickering light of the candle in the dim setting made his iris’s more of a heather blue than the deep cobalt they usually were. Dean could see the amused curve of Cas’ smile but Dean was too entranced to care.

“What do you think?” Castiel’s voice broke through Dean’s mooning and he realized that Castiel had been speaking to him.

“What do I think about what?” he asked and Castiel flattened his mouth in annoyance.

“Could you ogle the bartender later, I was asking you a question.”

“Sure-wait, what? What are you talking about? I was ogling you, moron. I was too busy lamenting about the color of your fucking eyes to hear you. Happy?”

Dean felt a little better when he saw the flash of regret on Castiel’s face, especially when it was followed up my a cocky smirk.

“Is that funny to you, Cas? That you make me all twitchy and tongue tied?”

“Yes. I find it very arousing,” Castiel said it so matter of factly, as if that was something you just _said_ out loud to someone.

Dean swallowed and stared around the room, noticing more couples coming in.“What were you asking me?”

“I was saying that things are probably very different in here on the weekends, what do you think?”

Dean nodded. “Yeah, looks like this might be the after work crowd. Couples coming together to relax after a hard day. I bet they even have a mellow band playing tonight.  I'm betting weekdays are the nights when they’re all cleaned up between 11:30 and 12:am. But Friday and Saturday? This place is probably completely different. Two, Three A.M. is no doubt when this place closes up for the night.”

Castiel looked at him curiously. “Why do you think that? I’m not saying you are wrong, I happen to agree. I just want to know your thought process.”

Dean laughed. “My thought process? Why?”

“We never really did the whole dating thing, we never talked about each other’s dates,” Castiel said and Dean held up a hand.

“With good reason. One of us would have murdered the other’s date. Let’s be real,” Dean teased.

“Anyway,” Castiel said with put upon exasperation, “I was just wondering why you think that, aside from the fact that a weekend usually does better business in general when it comes to drinking and eating establishments.”

“Well,” Dean said, his head turning towards the right and the the left, making and obvious show of looking around. “Look at this place. It’s basically your parent’s basement when nobody’s home. Juvenile heart shaped candles and mini booths, love seats, couches..huh.”

“What?” Castiel but Dean waved him off.

"I mean it's basically like a huge make-out palace for couples who literally want no one but each other. Who wouldn't rather come out on a Saturday night as opposed to a weekday when you have to worry about work in the morning?"

"I agree. now tell me why you were puzzled earlier." It took Dean a second, and then he remembered.

"Yes, I was thinking that there are all these couple-sized booths, and two person love seats, which I get, because of the type of club it is. But what's with the three person couches?"

Castiel slid closer to Dean and his hand reached out to twine with his. "Angels can have more than one bondmate."

"I'm sorry? Come again?"

Dean felt his heart rate spike, and not in a good way. The thought of sharing Castiel with anyone else made his chest tight, and bile rise up his throat. "Breathe," Castiel's voice came through, soothing and Dean felt his hands being squeezed. Dean felt his breath level out, wondering at his intense reaction. He had never been against that before, and he wasn't, for anyone else. But he knew without a doubt that he could never watch as someone touched Castiel in front of him.

"I can't-I can't do that, Cas. I wouldn't be able to handle it, so if you somehow stumble upon another mate, you're gonna have to count me out." Dean hated the vulnerable tone to his voice.

"Dean, I have no desires for another bondmate. You are everything that I could want or need,"

He let out a relieve sigh. Dean looked around for their waiter, but couldn't find them and he needed another drink.

"I'm going to go to the bar and order for us. One more of the same?" Dean asked and Castiel nodded. Dean kissed Cas' cheek on his way out of the booth.  He could feel the angel's gaze on him as walked up the bar.

"Hi there, what can I get you?"

Dean rattled off his order, uncomfortably aware of the fact that he was being watched by keen, blue eyes.

The bartender, Lisa, wore a tight black tee-shirt that left little to the imagination and only came to the naval. Dean found it a little odd that for a club geared towards couples would go out of their way to have their staff dress so provocatively. he looked up as the woman let out a throaty little chuckle.

"What's so funny?" he asked as he watched lisa throw the lime into the vodka tonic.

"It's nothing," she said with a laugh, "Just that you’re mate over there looks like he'd like to roast me over an open fire."

"No, he wouldn't-" Dean stopped and took a good look at Castiel. His shoulders were straight and rigid, and Dean could see the shadow of his wingspan, when he was sure he shouldn't have been able too. not unless Castiel showed them to him. "Jeez, Cas," he muttered to himself as he gave Lisa a nod and headed back to their little booth. Dean had barely sat down when he had a lapful of pissed off possessive angel.

"Cas? What the fu-" Dean was cut off as Castiel aggressively plundered his mouth. Dean felt fingers wind themselves tightly in his hair, and with every swipe of Castiel's tongue against his, Cas would tug on his hair, making him moan softly. Castiel ground against him and Dean hissed at the feeling of Cas' hard cock between their jeans.

"Jesus Christ, Cas," Dean mumbled as Castiel tore his mouth away from Dean's to bend his head and feast on Dean's neck. Dean blindly reached out to disable the camera.

Castiel pulled his head back and Dean caught his breath at the blue-black lust filled gaze.

"Dean" Cas gritted out, "You should take me home. I can't be around people who look at you like that, Not right now," Castiel attacked the other side of his neck and Dean sputtered, trying to hang onto his train of thought, instead of just blindly thrusting up, trying to catch his denim clad cock on Cas'. "We need to complete our bond, _ol monons_ .   _Olani solamian hiis,_ " Castiel panted from against Dean's skin.

“But we just got our drinks," Dean said weakly, not sure why he was arguing. he already knew that he wouldn't be catching a killer here tonight. Not in this low crowd. Only half of the seating  was filled couples,  Dean wondered how many were angel and humans and how many others might be vampires or werewolves. Dean nearly swallowed his tongue when Castiel slid off of him and picked up his drink and slammed it back in one go.

 

“Let’s go,” Dean said, grabbing Castiel’s hand and dragging him outside.

  


 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Olani solamian hiis:I long for you


	29. Chapter 29

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [](http://imgur.com/zLhJgJ0)   
> 

Castiel’s whole body seemed to be humming as he sat beside Dean in the passenger side of the Impala. Without words they seemed to know that touching each other would not be a good idea. Not if Castiel wanted Dean to get them home in one piece. Cas could hardly stand the anticipation, and he was glad that Dean didn’t have to ask, he just knew to go to Castiel’s house and not the apartment. Cas couldn’t promise quiet and this momentous occasion didn’t need an audience.

He hoped that Dean didn’t feel like he only wanted to do this because of his claiming instinct, because it wasn’t just that. It was a culmination of everything. Finally being together, yet not being together was driving him crazy. This case wasn’t helping. He didn’t like how it made him think about death when he should be thinking of the incredible life he was going to have here on Earth with this man.

Castiel’s leg jittered impatiently and he felt Dean’s warm calloused hand slip over his knee to settle the movement. Castiel tried to settle back comfortably in the seat and he was enveloped by the scents of leather, spice and sandelwood. _Dean_. Nothing ever smelt as delicious as his human.

“Wow, you are really worked up,” Dean said in wonder and Castiel gave a huff of laughter.

“What gave it away?” he asked drily.

“Aside from the ‘fuck you, he’s mine’ kiss at the club? Your wing oil. I can smell it,” and Castiel bit his lip as Dean moaned softly, muttering, “citrus, rain and earth. So good.”

Castiel couldn’t help himself; he leaned over to whisper in Dean’s ear. “Wait till you see how it tastes,” he said wickedly and Dean swore as he swerved.

“You get back to your side of the car, we’re almost there,” Dean said gruffly, looking more than a little shaken. Castiel wasn’t sure what it said about him that he liked that. He could feel the smile stretched across his face as he felt so light, so happy with what was about to happen. When Dean parked Baby crookedly in Cas’ driveway, it was a sign he was just as affected as Cas was. Castiel rushed out of the car, and strode up his driveway, so that he had his front door unlocked by the time Dean reached him.

No words were spoken as they made their way towards Castiel’s bedroom. Cas could feel Dean’s nervousness and for some reason that just made him more confident. He could take care of Dean. He watched as his partner toed off his boots and removed his jacket, tossing it over the knob of Cas’ door. Castiel gestured to the bed. “Sit down,” he said, focusing on keeping Dean calm. He knew that he was nervous because this wasn’t just sex. This was pure connection. This was true love.

Slowly, Castiel slipped off Dean’s suit jacket, and laid it across his bureau. His shirt followed, and he pulled his belt off with a soft _whoosh_. All the while, Dean watched him with a look of awe that made Castiel feel cherished. He opened the first snap of his jeans and stepped forward in front of Dean.  His breath hitched when Dean lifted his hands to run up and down Cas’ sides. Castiel reached his own hands down to tug at the hem of Dean’s shirt.  He pulled it up and over him with no resistance.  His hands reached down to undo Dean’s gun belt, which he carefully laid across the other side of his bureau. Castiel stepped back to pull his jeans and boxers down, toeing off his socks. He arched a brow at Dean. “You now,” he said, a little breathlessly.

Dean licked his lips then  lifted his hips off of the edge of the bed to push down his jeans and boxers, kicking them off, his socks along with them. A flush was crawling up Dean’s body, but he displayed himself unashamedly. His body was a delightful feast before Cas’ eyes. Gorgeous freckled skin over a hard chest with a tiny bit of pudge around the belly. Dean’s cock was thick, and long, the spongy head blushing and glistening.

Castiel could barely contain a groan at the site and felt his own cock twitching in response. “Sit back,” it came out a rough whisper but Dean still eagerly complied, scooting back until he was sitting up, reclined against the headboard. Castiel crawled up the bed and straddled Dean’s strong thighs. He twined his arms around Dean’s neck and moved closer. He dipped his head in to capture Dean’s mouth with his own and that seemed to light a fire under the other man. Suddenly, Dean’s hands were everywhere. Fisted in Cas’ hair, scratching down his back, gripping at his hips. It was like Dean didn’t know where to touch first, and Castiel understood because he didn’t know where he wanted to be touched first either. When he felt the silken slide of Dean’s cock against his there was a hiss and crackle of electricity and Castiel felt his wings enter their plane of exisitence. Dean’s breath hitched and his eyes widened, the green and gold flecked orbs unblinking and Castiel’s feathers stretched  out before curling forward to caress at Dean’s back.

“They’re so gorgeous, Cas,” Dean’s voice was pure amazement as he took in Castiel’s wings and he could feel the slick of his wing oil beginning to drip. To Castiel they were just glossy black wings, that sometimes showed shades of blue and purple and green if the light hit them just so. He thought compared to Gabriel’s golden wings and Hael’s lovely spots, that his were pretty tame. But Dean was staring at him, hungrily, looking like he would love nothing more than to bury his hands in Castiel’s feathers.

“Go ahead, Dean, touch me,” Castiel rasped out and that seemed to be what Dean was waiting for as he buried his fingers in Castiel’s wings, massaging the joints and causing the oil to flow. Castiel gyrated against Dean as the man continued to stroke his feathers as he trailed sucking kisses down Castiel’s neck and across his collar bone.  Dean kissed his way back up Cas’ jawline, kissing his cheeks, his eyelids, and his temple. They rested for a moment, forehead to forehead, while Castiel, made tiny, circling movements with his hips, making Dean whimper.

“I love you, so much Cas,” Dean whispered, hands going from gripping to stroking. Castiel arched his back and began to roll more aggressively against Dean’s shaft. Dean kissed him hard, sucking on his tongue and nibbling at his lips before he pulled away, to pepper kisses along his shoulders. Dean brought oil slick fingers down to tease at Castiel’s nipples, tugging and squeezing the peeks until they pebbled up. Dean leaned his head down and captured the right nub into his mouth. Castiel’s fingers tangled themselves in Dean’s hair, gripping hard as he was overwhelmed with sensation. Castiel could feel Dean’s hot tongue laving against his nipple and his small dark, mole. He could feel the way his calloused fingers felt against the one not in Dean’s mouth. But that wasn’t all, because he could also taste the explosion of flavor as Dean sucked at his glistening nipples, wet with saliva and oil.  He knew he was tasting himself through Dean’s mind. The bright orange, with the cool water and the hint of something dark and earthy. He felt like he couldn’t get enough, all of it. The feeling of skin on skin, the electric taste.

The entire bedroom was a symphony of breathy moans and needy sighs. Castiel managed to raise up on his knees. Dean looked up at him, dazed, a euphoric expression on his face and they hadn’t even joined bodies yet. Castiel gripped the headboard behind Dean and spread his legs wider.

Castiel stared into Dean’s love struck gaze and tried something. _Touch me,_ Cas pushed the thought at Dean and could tell by the widening of his eyes, that Dean had heard him. Dean buried one hand in the back of Castiel's head, using the trestles as an anchor, as he brought his other slippery fingers up to gently slide through the crease of his ass to circle gently at his hole. Dean teased around the rim,  tapping at the furled entrance before slipping that first digit inside. They both groaned deeply at the sensation. Castiel found himself working his hips up and down over Dean’s finger, and Castiel keened when he saw Dean’s blissed out expression.

“It’s like, I can feel how hot and tight you are inside,” Dean said as he slid another oil slick finger into Cas’ hot channel. “I feel your heat, and your…” Dean trailed off as his fingers brushed over Castiel’s prostate, which made them both cry out.

“Oh, fuck,” Dean said, a sentiment Castiel echoed with a grunt. Feeling so full, while feeling what Dean was experiencing was almost too much. When Dean slipped a third finger in, Castiel had to stop himself from riding those fingers hard. Instead, he brought shaky hands to cup Dean’s face as their lips clung to each other. When they parted, Castiel trailed hot, open mouthed kisses down Dean's neck. Sucking dark marks into the skin, until the line of Dean's throat was covered in tiny busted blood vessels.   _Mine, mine, mine_ was the chant in Cas' head.

Castiel knew he was ready now, and again, Dean didn't need to be told, he just knew. Dean buried his fingers in Cas’ wings again, purposely massaging those wing joints, causing more of the oil to come out. Castiel watched as Dean brought his slick hand to his cock and gave it a few strokes before helping to guide Castiel down onto his hardness. The head of Dean’s cock nudged at Cas’ entrance and it took all of his control not to slam right down. Instead he eased his way back down until he bottomed out. Dean was shaking and gritting his teeth, a mantra of _hold on, hold on_ playing in his head.

When their eyes met again, Dean’s widened in awe and Castiel cocked his head in askance. “Your eyes, sweetheart, your eyes are glowing," Cas shuddered out a breath as he felt Dean trying not to thrust up into him.

Castiel needed to break that control. Now.

“Dean, _rit ladnah_ ,” Castiel grunted out and Dean began to thrust shallowly. Castiel threw his head back and moaned a deep, throaty sound, as he writhed on top of Dean, angling down at every upward thrust. He could feel the slick hotness of Dean’s cock as it pounded up into his hole, and at the same time,  he could feel the heat too. There was a storm curling and twisting in the room and Castiel vaguely became aware of curtains flapping and the pop and crackle of static. Dean began to thrust harder, with a mess of raspy “ _unh, unh, unh_ ” tumbling out of his mouth. The head of Dean’s cock was brushing his sweet spot on every other stroke and Cas began to slam back down on Dean’s lap, repeatedly. “ _Ah, ah, ah_ ,” he panted as Dean gripped his right hip firmly and brought his right hand up to start stroking Cas’ cock in time with his thrusts. There was a line of energy between them, anchoring them together. Castiel felt like the very essence of himself was merging with Dean's bright soul.  Dean trembled beneath him and Castiel understood as the feedback loop of sensation grew until it was almost too much. The pleasure pain of being just on the cusp was stealing Cas’ breath. He didn’t know whether to rock back onto Dean’s cock or push forward into his fist, and then suddenly it didn’t matter anymore. Not as Castiel was suddenly a live wire of sensation, pumping out ropes of come onto Dean’s sweat slickened chest, as the orgasm burst from him, and making him lock up. Castiel, arched, throat bared, and Dean screamed into the crook of Castiel’s neck as he exploded inside of Castiel’s tightening channel. Cas’ muscles milked Dean down and the sight of his mate underneath him, writhing in beautiful agony had him coming again on a short gasp. The room seemed to glow as Cas sank on Dean’s lap, the two resting their heads on each other's shoulders.

Castiel wasn’t sure how long he sat that way, in Dean’s lap, embracing, but eventually the come cooling between their stomachs grew cool and tacky.

For once, Castiel did something that Dean hated, and that was use his powers for a menial task. With a flick of the wrist, their bodies were clean, and he pushed Dean back with a sigh.

“You know I hate it when you waste your mojo,” Dean mumbled sleepily.  Castiel curled up next to his mate, head on Dean’s strong shoulder and thought that Dean would have to get over it.

“I can hear you now, you know,” Dean said, massaging Castiel’s scalp with his fingers, “so cut back on the sass,” he teased sleepily.

 Castiel just sighed, contentedly.   _“Olani hoalth ol_ ,“he whispered.

  
_I love you too,_  danced through his mind and Castiel drifted into sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> rit ladnah: Move now  
> Olani hoalth ol : I love you


	30. Chapter 30

The next few days were interesting to navigate. If Dean thought he felt connected to Castiel before, that was nothing to how it was now. Both Cas and Gabriel said it would tone down in a few days and he sure hoped so. It was like being in two different bodies, usually just feeling double of the same emotion, while sometimes if was as if he was fighting with himself.

Eventually it did settle down  around day two. Now Dean only felt what Castiel was feeling if it was an extremely strong reaction, or if they were purposely pushing their thoughts toward each other, which Dean thought was pretty cool. It was like telepathically passing notes in english class, with a guarantee of not getting caught.

The only time they really had no control over it, was when they were being sexual. Dean and Cas had gone back the Birds of a Feather that Wednesday night, and it was just more of the same. Lisa was still there with her flirty smile, only this time Cas’ jealousy was manageable, and she was just a victim of sullen looks and extreme sessions of public displays of affection. Not that it bothered Dean at all. Castiel being jealous was one of the hottest things Dean had ever seen. His brows would narrow and his eyes did this adorable squinty thing. On Thursday night, Lisa had brushed her hand down his arm and Castiel given her a look that would have frozen anyone else, but Lisa seemed unruffled and Dean was still amused.

* * *

 

“I don’t see what is so funny about it,” Castiel pouted, as they left the club .

“It’s not funny, it’s just...okay, so usually I considered myself way out of your league, and I guess sometimes it makes me feel better that I know you really want me.”

Castiel turned fond eyes on Dean, and he smiled his wide smile, the one that crinkled his nose and showed his teeth. The one Dean considered pure sunshine.

“I’m always going to want you, Dean,” Castiel panted heavily later that night, as Dean licked into his fluttering entrance, Castiel’s pink pucker flexing around his tongue. Dean continued to suck and lick at the angel's hole, slipping in two oil slick digits to massage Castiel prostate as the angel fell apart underneath him. Dean couldn’t get enough of the taste of Cas, his dark citrus, as he speared his tongue in and out of his rosette. Dean ate Castiel out with the same fervor he used to kiss. Long sucks and nibbles, fingers thrusting in and out. It took all of Dean’s self control to not hump into the blankets beneath him; he wanted to focus on Castiel’s pleasure, but it didn’t matter. As soon as Castiel’s back bowed up off of the bed, come shooting up onto his stomach, Dean didn’t stand a chance, he came untouched where he laid sucking in air, feeling phantom licks at his own furled pucker. His cheek was pressed against Castiel’s inner thigh, and his fingers were still buried in Cas' ass.

When they curled up together that night, Dean couldn’t help feeling anxious. He didn’t like the thought of having to wait until Saturday to get another chance at finding this guy, but he didn’t really see much of a choice. They had interviewed the witnesses again, hoping to turn up some new information. They did catch a little bit of luck when Dean decided to touch base with Alicia Banes again. He asked if she happened to notice what Mr. Money bags was driving when he came to the salon. As luck would have it, she did.

“I’m sorry! I should have thought to mention it,” she said, distressed.

“No, don’t worry about it. This is why we always keep in touch. Sometimes a little break helps shake forth new information.”

“Yes, I didn’t even think about it until you asked. I only know because I was curious as to what kind of vehicle someone walking around with 1200 dollars cash for hair and body products was buying.”

And?”

“And nothing too impressive. Just your standard black van, tinted windows. I think it may have been a Ford, I wasn’t really paying too much attention. Someone else was driving though, I do remember that much, because he got in the passenger side.”

It wasn’t much, but it was something. He wound up sending the police sketch to all units, asking that they proceed with caution, and to be on the lookout of any suspicious black Ford Vans. Things appeared to be at a standstill by the time Saturday rolled around around.  By now, Dean and Castiel had learned to not arrive too early at the club, or they were just going to be staring at the early crowd and drinking soft drinks for hours, which Lisa the bartender, wasn’t very fond of. Not much of a tip for a few virgin Bloody Mary’s. But after the first night, Dean didn’t trust either him or Cas to keep their hands to themselves.

The Saturday crowd was very different from the weekday patrons. As soon as Dean and Castiel stepped into the establishment it was like being in a completely different club. The music was no longer low and sultry, but a floor bumping base and techno beats poured out of the speakers. The red tealight candles that usually adorned the tables in glass hearts, were replaced with long tapers housed on large glass plates. The whole lighting scheme was dark, house lights not on, just some soft spotlights on the bar. The rest of the lights came from the laser lights strobing through the crowd.  A large sign by the stage proclaimed that karaoke started at 10pm. Castiel tried to convince Dean that he should perform and bring attention to them selves, but Dean was all set with that. He doubted very much that this was a _Simple Man_ kind of audience.

This time they took a love seat that was angled towards the stage but still had a decent view of the the bar. It was right around 9:30 pm when Castiel very nonchalantly leaned over in the pretense of kissing Dean’s neck.

“Look at the bar, the guy working the tap?” Castiel murmured. He brushed his lips down the side of Dean’s neck, then ghosted over his clavicle, giving Dean the opportunity to tip his head back. Through slitted lids.

There behind the bar was without a doubt, the man that Alicia Banes had described. He had on a tee-shirt with the club's logo on it, but the mustache, the goatee, the hair? It was all the same. The coloring and the slicked back style.

Dean mimicked Castiel’s move, and nuzzled into the angel’s ear, nipping at the lobe, “How do you want to play this? The waitress has been attentive, no excuse to go to the bar.”

Castiel pulled back and took a sip of his drink. A virgin rum and coke, that Dean had laughed at when he had ordered.

Castiel’s gravelly voice was hard to hear over the din of the crowd, so Dean used one of his new tricks. He cupped Castiel’s cheek and stared into his eyes while speaking to him from his mind. _What do you want to do? I can feel that you’ve have an idea._

* * *

 

 

Castiel gave Dean a lingering kiss before he slid off of the love seat. The kiss may have been for show, but the feeling behind it, wasn’t. Castiel carried his coke to the bar and leaned over the black granite while he waited to be noticed. His eyes scanned the room and  he watched as Lisa cleared empty glasses off of the booths and little end tables. He scowled in annoyance as she edged closer to Dean and their table. He rolled his eyes when Dean tossed him a wink before gracing Lisa with a charming smile.

Up on the stage behind a flowing pink screen, the shadow of bodies could be seen moving in erotic ways, one set of shadows appeared to be receiving fellatio from the other while the other set was what Dean referred to as the ‘reverse cowgirl’.

“What can I get you?” A voice with a twang he couldn’t quite place, pulled Castiel’s attention back to the bar. Light blue eyes looked him over appreciatively and Castiel pasted on an engaging smile.

“Um, yes. I’m afraid there is no alcohol in this coke,” Cas gave a self-deprecating smile and the bartender grinned in return. His name tag read Cole and he glanced over his shoulder to where Cas had come from.

“Yes, you're the dry table,” Cole joked and Castiel nodded.

“Yes, well, not for long, I hope.”

Cole grinned and took Cas’ glass, tipping out the contents and making a fresh drink, this time with plenty of Captain Morgan.

Cole once again looked over at Dean’s table, where he was still speaking with Lisa.

“Is that your mate over there talking to Lisa?” Cole asked and Castiel gave a quick nod ad he pulled out a ten out of his wallet. $8.50 for a drink was highway robbery, but he handed it over with a smile.

“Yes, that is Dean. I’m Castiel,”  Cas held out his hand and Cole shook it.

“Trenton. Cole Trenton.”

 _Cole Trenton. Cole Trenton. Cole Trenton._ Castiel pushed the thought towards Dean.

“How long have the two of you been together?”

“We actually just got together,” Castiel said, willing a blush across his face to create an air of innocence. When Dean began shooting him visions of Castiel on his back, knees pulled up to his chest, while Dean stretched his hole with slippery fingers, the blush came naturally.

 _Cole Trenton_ , he thought back again, with authority. A quick look back showed Dean finally pulling out his phone, though Lisa still seemed insistent on having a conversation.

“So you’re newly mated,” Cole said. ‘“I’m surprised.”

Castiel raised a quizzical brow. “Why?”

“You both seem really comfortable together, the way you were interacting, the way you moved. I’m sorry, does that sound creepy?”

 _Yes. yes it does_ , Cas thought to himself.

“It’s just that studying bondmates is kind of my hobby. It’s the main reason I got a job here. I can tell when people have a really deep connection, the way you two do.” He said eagerly and Castiel hoped his smile wasn’t too forced. This guy was definitely giving off bad juju.

“Well, we were friends first for a long time, but there is only so long true mates can stay just friends.’’

Castiel watched as Cole’s face lit up in what could only be described as glee.

“That’s so rare. I knew a pair of true mates once,” he said., wistfully and for a second it was like he was lost.

“Trenton!” someone called from the back. “I need help unloading this keg!"

“Be right there,” He yelled back.

While Cole was in the back Dean searched out his eyes from across the room and held up his phone. Cas knew that meant he’d gotten in touch with Charlie and was waiting to see if Mr. Trenton had a rap sheet. Dean said something to Lisa and gestured to his table before he caught Cas’ eye again and headed outside. Castiel turned back towards the bar when he heard Cole return.

“Hey, where is your other half?” he asked, sounding concerned.

“Phone call,” Cas replied.

“Do you want a drink for him for when he comes back?”

“No, that’s alright, I do believe we will be leaving soon.”

"Yeah, I was hoping to get out of here, too. That’s not going to happen when working with Lisa. She’s always disappearing whenever she feels like it.”

“Not a fan, hmm?” Castiel said, getting a flush of nervous energy in his gut. Something didn’t feel right.

Cole looked at him with contrition. “I’m sorry, it’s inappropriate for me to speak of a co-worker that way, in front of a customer.”

Castiel looked around, noting that Lisa was, in fact, gone. “That’s alright, it doesn’t bother me.”

 “It’s just that she’s, well.. She is kind of spoiled. Her uncle owns this club, she works here because he asked her to. And she makes way more money than she should. You know, last week we were both stuck here and she had to run an errand, only it was apparently too much for her highness, so her uncle had me do it. Had her creepy body guard drive me.”

A feeling of dread seemed to pool in the pit of Castiel stomach and it was like he already knew what he was going to say next.

“You know what she has me buy? Over twelve hundred dollars worth of shampoo and soap. Twelve hundred dollars!  Who has that kind of money just lying around?"

Castiel made sure to nod sympathetically.

"Oh, and then she makes me memorize this crazy quote. Says if they ask what I need all of that product for, I just say something about...angels and mirrors. What the hell does that even mean?”

Castiel’s bad feeling increased and his eyes looked frantically around the room. Dean wasn’t back yet, and neither was Lisa. Castiel felt a dull roaring in his head before he heard his name being called.

_Cas? Castiel? God, I hope you can hear me. I need help Cas I ne-_

_Dean! Dean, can you hear me?_

Castiel, panicked,  interrupted Cole’s poor me story. “What’s Lisa’s last name?”

Cole’s brows knit together in confusion. “Braeden. Lisa Braeden. Why? What’s the mat-”

Castiel had his phone out and was running out the door of the club before Cole could even finish his sentence.

* * *

 

 

When Dean woke up his head was throbbing. The room he was in was dark, with one high window where the moonlight was streaming through.  Dean tried to move his arms and found them bound behind his back and his ankle chained to what he thought was some kind of cot. Through the beams of moonlight on the floor he could see dark stains and it didn’t take him long to figure out what it was.

Dean didn’t panic. He was too well trained to panic. He knew the first thing he needed to do was try and get a lay of the room. Hard when he was chained to a bed. He could make out that wherever he was, was the ground floor, judging by the drain near the bed. There were four walls and a door that could be locked, but he really couldn’t tell from where he was.  The smell was musty with mildew and the metallic scent of blood. Dean tried not to let it skeeve him out that he was probably sitting on a bed full of someone else’s bodily fluids.

The thought had his breathing increasing and he had to take a moment. Deep breaths through the mouth and out through the nose as he once again steadied his pulse rate. Dean closed his eyes then. He shut off all thoughts in his brain and just focused on what he could here. First off, he could hear traffic, so wherever he was, it was near a main road or a busy section of town. He could also tell that there was constant running water, coming from somewhere.  Dean turned his head towards the window and winced. Fuck, did his head hurt.

He pieced together what had happened. Apparently the bartender was not their guy. When Castiel had sent him the name Cole Trenton in his thoughts, Dean immediately texted Charlie and asked her to do a background check.  When she called back a few minutes later, he couldn’t hear her over the music. He’d asked Lisa if there was someplace private he could talk and she had led him to the back door, to a quiet, clean alley. The next thing he knew, something was clubbing him on the back of the head. He thought it may have been a bottle of some kind. It wasn’t enough to knock him out, but it was enough to daze him to the point where he couldn’t avoid the needle filled with what he guess was a tranquilizer, going my the dry taste in his mouth.

“Alright, Winchester, let’s work this out. Ground level, busy road and rushing water. So I am at least in some proximity to the Hudson,” Dean chattered out loud to himself and paused when he thought he heard the faint sound of a train. The railways were between New York City and Northern New Jersey. No way to pinpoint where, but Dean did what he could. He closed his eyes and tried to contact Cas.

“Dear Castiel, angel of my heart and loins, I don’t know how much time I’ll have before she comes back. It’s Lisa man. We had it wrong. _Fuck_ Fuck! My head really hurts, Cas. If I need stitches and wind up with a bald spot, I am gonna be pissed,” Dean shifted on the cot again, his arms tied behind him were starting to ache.  “I can tell I am in a building on the ground floor. I am handcuffed to a fucking cot man, this is so not the kind of kinky I like. There is one small window that I can see the moon through directly. I can hear traffic and rushing water. Like extra loud for some reason, and I am pretty sure I’m near a train stop.”

Dean hoped Castiel was able to catch all that, he wished he could get some kind of sign. Dean leaned back and closed his eyes. Just before he heard the door knob to room turn, he heard Castiel’s whiskey-soaked voice.

_Hang in there, Dean. I know where you are. I love you._

The door pushed all the way open and there stood Lisa and some big behemoth of a man that he did not know from Adam.

“Lisa. Lurch. Wanna tell me what we are doing here?”

Lisa tsked. “Now, Dean, that wasn’t polite. This is my bodyguard, Alexi. He is such a sweet guy. So good at carrying bodies.”

“Oh yeah? Did he carry the body of Jacie Hudgens to the park, too?”

“I see you watch the news,” she said with a wicked smile.

“I like to keep up on current events myself, so yeah, I have been known to watch the news every once in awhile. So what’s the deal here, why do you have such a hard-on for angels?”

Lisa stalked up to him and slapped him across the face. “Don’t be crass, Dean. I'm here to purify you."

"What does that even mean?" Dean wiggled his jaw, and opened his mouth a few times, before he started again. “Come on. What’s your story? Everyone has one. You must have one if you murdered that poor girl. So what is it? Childhood trauma. Touched inappropriately by an angel? Left by angel...left _for_  an angel?”

Lisa looked at him sharply, dark eyes gleaming in the barely there light. _Ooh, hit a nerve._

“Come on, Lis. It’s just us. And your golem over here,” Dean nodded at the large silent man. “Tell me all about your secret pain.  What little angel broke you and turned you into a pyschopath?”

"You think that angels are good and holy, but they're not. They are just as manipulative as humans. They will take what's yours, without even asking.”

"Is that what happened to you, Lisa? Did some badass angel come and steal your boyfriend?"

She moved so quickly, Dean missed the blade until it was piercing his shoulder.

_“Aaah Fuck!”_

“That’s just the beginning. I like to have fun before I cleanse your body and soul. To be righteous, one needs to learn humility," Lisa gave him a frightening smile while brandishing her knife.  "Tell me, where are you ticklish?”

* * *

 

 

Castiel was doing everything in his power not to panic. He’d had Charlie get any information she could on Lisa Braeden. What he’d learned was that she had been engaged to a man named Kyle Thomas. Two years ago, the night before their wedding, he left her with a Dear John letter. Kyle had met his true mate, and angel named Afriel.

A search confirmed that Kyle was killed a month later, unknown causes. Lisa had been questioned at the time, but since nothing was found in Kyle’s system and she had an alibi confirmed by a Alexi Petrov.

Lisa had been raised by her Uncle David Vasiliev when her parents were killed in an auto accident when she was just ten years old. She’d done the whole route, private school, fancy college, but nothing seemed to really stick. Research found she had barely been able to hold onto a job. She began working at Birds of a Feather six months ago, her uncle taking pity and hiring her as a bartender and waitress.

It didn’t take a psych consult to know that being around the ridiculously happy mated pairs had done something to her. Assuming she hadn’t already crossed that line with Kyle.

David Vasiliev sat in an interview room with Lieutenant Singer, because Castiel wasn’t allowed in. Too emotional is what he’d been told when Benny held him back from the room.

He needed to find Dean. The way he had just cut off like that. He needed to know where he was. He just got him, he’d be damned if he lost him already. They needed more time. Castiel paced the room on the other side of the glass, fingers pulling at his hair.  He crouched down against the wall, pleading with anyone who would listen to protect Dean. And that’s when he heard it.

_Dear Castiel, angel of my heart and loins, I don’t know how much time I’ll have before she comes back. It’s Lisa man. We had it wrong. Fuck My head really hurts, Cas. If I need stitches and wind up with a bald spot, I am gonna be pissed. I can tell I am in a building on the ground floor. I am handcuffed to a fucking cot man, this is so not the kind of kinky I like. There is one small window that I can see the moon through directly. I can hear traffic and rushing water. Like extra loud for some reason, and I am pretty sure I’m near a train stop._

Castiel shot up wildly. He muscled past Benny and burst into the interview room.

“Castiel!” Singer barked but Castiel couldn’t be bothered to care.”Her properties. You said you gave her properties. Empty buildings? I am looking for something that is near a highway or busy road. One that’s near the river and the train station. Which one of her buildings fits that description?” Castiel was shaking, pure energy, ready to go off. He needed to find his mate _now._

“Cas, where are you getting this information?” Bobby asked him, baffled.

“Dean. I got it from Dean," his voice broke a little on Dean's name.

“She has a small property off of I86 that fits that description. It used to be a yankee candle warehouse. The whole thing is one level. She talked about maybe having a bookstore and cafe there once, but of course it never went anywhere,” the man sighed and Castiel felt a moments worth of pity. It seems that this man had tried everything he could for his niece. Unfortunately, sometimes people just turned out wrong, no matter what.

“Alright, I need the quickest route to this property,” Bobby said sharply. “ Castiel and I are headed out of the building now and I want that information sent to my phone before we reach the car, you got me Bradbury?”

“Already sent Lieutenant. Go get him, guys,”she said but Castiel was already running out the door, beating Bobby  to the Impala.

“Hang in there, Dean. I know where you are. I love you,” Castiel whispered as he unlocked the door. He quickly reached over to unlock the passenger side door for Bobby.

“You doin okay, boy?” Bobby asked as Castiel started the car and pealed out of the parking lot, and Castiel nodded. “Alright then, let’s go rescue this idjit.”

Castiel suddenly felt a sharp pain in his shoulder. He muscled through it and concentrated on the road, begging Dean to hang on and hoping against hope that they weren’t too late.

* * *

 

 

Lisa was silent in her work, where she poked at his skin, little pokes with her knife, just deep enough to sting. It was like she was playing with her food.

Dean had blood pouring from his shoulder wound and Castiel’s voice was a litany in his head, just begging him to stay with him. Dean wanted to respond back, but the constant slices and nicks and stings from the knife, and the occasional twist to the shoulder were distracting him.

“Hey, “ Dean managed to pant out, “What’s with the extra treatment. Not that I’m complaining, I appreciate your attention to detail, I’m just _ahhh_ just wondering what makes me so special?”

Lisa dug her fingers into Dean’s bleeding shoulder and he saw black on the edge of his vision. He knew he was close to passing out. He vaguely thought he heard her murmur that he looked so much like Kyle but since he was on the verge of passing out, he couldn’t be sure. When he felt the line of fire as her blade dragged across his stomach all he could do was  scream until he lost consciousness. She was kind enough to use smelling salts to bring him back.

* * *

 When they found the building,  Castiel parked across the street.  He didn’t know if she was alone or not, but Castiel figured there had to be an accomplice, somewhere. Someone who was strong enough to carry Jacie Hudgen’s body and Dean’s.

Dean was still alive, he knew that much by the constant sting of pain. A sudden pain, like someone had sliced right through his belly, had him doubling over.

He felt Bobby’s arm around his shoulders, and heard him ask if he was okay.

“I’m fine, never mind me,” he gritted out. “We need to get to Dean,” Castiel shoved his pain down deep, forcing himself to ignore it, and felt tears sting his eyes as he realized that no matter how painful it was for him, it was worse for Dean.

They approached the building, Bobby with his gun drawn and Cas with his angel blade at the ready. He wasn’t really surprised to see the outside unguarded. This was not some criminal mastermind, this was a spoiled woman throwing a temper tantrum and taking it out on innocent people.

 Bobby pulled out a lock pick and Castiel couldn't help the smile that came over his face. Bobby narrowed his eyes and asked him what the hell he was grinning at.

"Nothing, it’s just...you taught him well.”

Castiel knew that Dean had always considered Bobby as more of a father figure to him, especially after Dean’s dad died.

The door must have been recently been oiled because it made no sound when it was pushed open. A large bald man stood at the far left of the room, guarding a door. He didn’t have time to be surprised when Castiel appeared directly in front of him, knocking him unconscious with the touch of his fingers to his forehead.Of course, Castiel probably should have taken into account the sound of the thud.

On three, Bobby and Castiel burst in through the door, startling the woman standing  over Dean. At first, the sight that greeted him, nearly had Cas on his knees. Now that the adrenaline of finding Dean had worn off, he became even more aware of the pain. His shoulder burned and his stomach...Cas had a hard time getting back up. But Dean was staring at him through pain glazed eyes while a knife packing princess tried to kill him and that was all that was important. He saw Dean shift, saw him try to fight through the pain and maneuver himself away from Lisa, which only irritated her more.

“Dean,” Castiel’s voice was rough with pain and fear. “ _Gnay ip rit_ . _Nostoah gemeganza noasmi netaab ipzi_.”

Dean gave a barely there nod.

 _Whatever happens, I will save you._ Castiel sent the thought over to Dean and was nearly in tears when he saw the barely there smile.

“Why don’t you drop the knife, lady. You know you aren’t getting out of here alive,” Bobby said, drawing Lisa’s attention to himself. Castiel crept a little closer to the cot, but Lisa saw the movement out of the corner of her eye.

“If you even think of coming near me, I will plunge this knife into his heart so fast, your head will spin,” her words were bitter and her tone was mad, but Castiel knew she meant it.

"What do you want?” he asked her. “What can I do to get us out of here safely?”

Lisa threw her head back and laughed. “ What do you think you could possibly do that would get you out of here alive? Are you going to bring back Kyle? Are you going to get me some counseling and tell the judge I am just some poor, broken girl? I saved that girl, and I would have saved him! I could have purified him!” Lisa stepped forward, leaning her face into Cas’ and he could see just how not right she was by the look in her eyes. His hand reached out, quicker than she was counting on, and he gripped her wrist. The knife clattered to the ground and he twisted her arm behind her back. He felt Bobby come up behind him and help by pulling Cas’ cuffs out of his inner pocket.

Castiel knew that Dean was fading from blood loss, because he could feel it in himself. He was getting woozy and his vision was clouding and he knew he could only grip her tight for so long.

“Bobby, I need-”

“I know, boy, I got her.”

Lisa was a silent, sobbing mess as Bobby finished cuffing her and whipping out his cell phone to call for backup.

Castiel stumbled his way over to Dean.

“Heya, Cas,” Dean whispered and Castiel huffed a laugh.

“Hello, Dean. You are quite the mess right now, my love. I need you to lay still for me," Castiel's breathing was short as he tried to maneuver through the shared bond. " I can’t do this if you are moving. I need to have all my concentration focused on healing your wounds, or we will both die. Do you understand me,” Cas didn't think his own voice had ever been so thin and reedy.

“Yeah, no moving. I can lie here. No pressure, right?”

Castiel leaned  down and pressed his lips to Dean’s softly. “None whatsoever,” Castiel reached down and laced one hand with Dean’s and placed it over his heart. The other, he placed over the wound of his stomach, because at this point, that one was more dangerous than the shoulder. Castiel closed his eyes, breathing ragged as he tried his best to ignore the fact that his own body felt like it was being flayed open. He poured all of his concentration into opening his own mind to create a direct link from Dean’s core to Cas' own grace. He pictured it, in his mind's eye, the blue, pulsing light entering Dean’s body, invading the bloodstream, fusing with the cells and stitching his skin back together. Inch by inch his grace washed over Dean’s body, healing new wounds and old. As Dean grew stronger, Castiel felt himself grow weaker, but at least the pain was easing. When he was sure that Dean’s wounds had all closed, he allowed himself to smile at the man beneath him, before collapsing in an exhausted heap.

  
  


 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gnay ip rit. Nostoah gemeganza noasmi netaab ipzi: do not move. it will be over soon


	31. epilogue

“Sam! Could you hurry it up? It’s dinner at Mom’s, not the fucking Emmy awards.”

Castiel smirked at Dean from his seat on the couch. You’d have thought a near death experience would have maybe made his love a little bit more sentimental.

“Nobody cares that you moisturize your hair, Sam, come on. A little frizz never hurt anyone.”

Nope. Not Dean Winchester.

Castiel watched in amusement as Sam left the bathroom and whacked Dean in the face with a wet towel. It had been almost a week since the incident with Lisa, and Sunday dinner at Mary's was finally happening.  Of course, this would be the first one Cas would be attending as Dean's boyfriend. There were a lot of loose ends to tie up with the case, but that could wait until Monday.

Sam sat down across from Cas in the chair, his long hair dripping across the shoulders of his shirt. Castiel felt that he was gearing up to say something, so he waited him out.

“Cas, I just wanted to say thanks, for what you did for Dean. I know you’ll say it was your job, and that you love him and I know that is all true. But I need you to know that you saved our family. If something had happened to Dean, I don’t know if my Mom or myself could have ever come back from it. I have been wanting to get you alone to say this to you all week, but Dean seems to have been suction cupped to your side ever since you got back from the warehouse.”

That was true. Castiel had worn himself out when he healed Dean, enough so that he was out of commission for most of the week. Dean, of course, had felt wonderful. Hopped up on angel grace, he’d gone a little overboard with the over protective drill. Not that he minded it, really. What was wrong with being cuddled and kissed within an inch of your life? Nothing, according to Cas. A lot, according to the parking lot attendant of an Arby’s. Especially when that cuddling and kissing was of the naked variety. Castiel swore that day, that it would be the last time he ever used his badge to get out of any wrongdoing.

 _A little indecent exposure never hurt anybody, Cas._ The memory of Dean's voice floated in his mind making him smile.

Of course, that attitude had changed when Bobby found out about it and reamed him out over the phone, telling Dean that even if he was on vacation, as a member of the Paranormal Homicide division, he had a reputation to uphold that didn’t include either him or Castiel being the town flasher.

 "Are you nervous about tonight?” Sam’s words brought Castiel back to the present. Was he nervous? Not really.

“No. I believe your mother will be supportive of our decision,” Dean was moving in with Castiel. He’d actually spent the last part of their week off, moving his stuff into the house little by little. Dean had teased him about staying in the apartment instead.

_Don’t you think you’ll miss Frank? Especially now that we know he is a total genius?_

Nobody had been more surprised than Castiel and Dean when it turned out that all of those deliveries that Frank insisted were illegal turned out to in fact be bricks of cocaine hidden inside of baby toys.  Frank said that he’d had no choice but to call in a false break in report on the neighbors, which led to a search and seizure and a fine for Frank for reporting a false crime. Dean, of course, made the charge disappear, insisting that busting open a drug ring was an even trade for an eccentric man’s freedom.

By the time Dean had finished his turn in the shower, they had about twenty minutes to spare to get to Mary's house on time.  When they arrived, she was waiting for them on her front porch. Mary jogged down the stairs to hug both of her boys, before she turned and embraced Castiel tightly.

“Thank you for my son,” she whispered against his cheek.

“You’re very welcome,” he said quietly, before following the rest of them into the house. Everyone filed inside, through the kitchen and out the back door to a large patio. Mary loved eating outside whenever the weather was nice enough and the table and chair's were already set. The Weber was on and heated for Sam's capable grilling hands, and a bottle of wine sat in an ice bucket next to some glasses. Everyone settled down around the table, digging into the plate of crackers and cheese Mary had put out for them.

“Okay, so Bobby is going to be bringing someone. He has finally started dating again after all of these years, so I want all three of you on your best behavior," Mary said, uncorking the bottle and pauring a few glasses.  Castiel tried not to be offended, because he was obviously the most well behaved out of all of them.

“Dean, honey, I thought that you were bringing your new special someone,” Dean’s mom’s eyes twinkled with happiness as she handed him a glass, and it was apparent that she was thrilled to hear that her oldest had finally gotten serious about someone.

Dean cleared his throat and under the table, Cas grasped Dean’s hand reassuringly. Dean turned his head to look at him, and his moss green eyes held all the warmth and love Castiel would ever need. Dean pulled their laced hands from beneath the table and laid them across the top.

“I did,” he said softly, looking at his Mom and gauging her reaction. Her face went from surprised, to happy, to in tears in what seemed like a blink of an eye. Even Sam’s eyes seemed suspiciously wet, and he had known the whole time.

“I am so happy for you, both. Dean, I honestly couldn’t pick someone better for you than your own guardian angel," Mary turned her warm gaze on Cas. "I can't deny that I had hoped this would happen one day.  Castiel, I have always thought of you as one of my own, I am so happy for it to be official."

“Thank you, Mary. I will endeavor to do my best to take care of him.”

Dean lifted their clasped hands to his lips and kissed Cas’ knuckles. “We’ll take care of each other.”

 

A clearing of the throat had everyone turning to look up.  No one had even heard the screen door open. Bobby stood at the table and Castiel had never seen him look so nervous before. Bobby Singer did not do nervous.Yet there he was, tugging at his collar, face flushed.

 

“Oh, good Lord,” came a crisp, cultured voice, ‘Don’t be such a baby. Mary, I presume?” Mary nodded, with wide eyes as Commissioner Crowley sat himself down at the table. His eyes fell on Castiel and Dean. “Hello, boys.”

 

Bobby was still standing next to the table, looking quite petrified until Dean started laughing. “Come on, old man. Sit down. Stop looking like we're gonna disown you or something.”

 

“So, now you know,” was all Bobby would say.

 

“I suppose we should welcome you to the family too, “ Mary said with a sunny smile and Dean raised his bottle of Bud.

 

“Welcome to the family, Uncle Crowley,” Dean said with a wink and Bobby retaliated by throwing a wheat cracker at him.

 

This was the family that Castiel was now claiming as his own. As he watched everyone around him laugh and smile, he leaned into Dean, who wrapped his arm around Cas' shoulders and pressed a soft kiss to his temple. The warmth of his body was a comfort Castiel was happy to never have to stop getting used to. This was what he might have missed out on if he hadn’t decided to take a risk. If Cas had now learned anything, it was that love was _always_ worth the risk. _Dean_ was always worth the risk. Their bond was unbreakable, and Castiel would never fear it again.

 

The end

**Author's Note:**

> Aschaniis ol oiad tahila: Welcome to the family


End file.
